Political parties play an important role in affecting the success or failure of good governance. The impact that political parties have on good governance is largely affected by the kind of party politics that they engage in. Programmatic party politics often support good governance, while Clientelistic party politics often hinder good governance.
It is not the case that programmatic politics always results in more responsible government, but research has shown that the emergence of more policy-based political competition creates a context in which policy and competency become the deciding factors in how people vote, and in which leaders are far more likely to be held accountable if they fail to implement their platforms.
Programmatic parties generate policy, mobilize support, and govern, on the basis of a consistent and coherent ideological position. Programmatic parties are contrasted with clientelistic parties. Clientelistic parties seek to mobilize support through patron–client networks and seek power in order to gain control over state resources.
The Importance of Programmatic Parties
Political parties that exhibit programmatic qualities are thought to better represent different groups in society by aggregating their preferences and acting on their best interests; they are therefore accountable to the citizens on those grounds. When political parties commit themselves to implementing a clear set of policy positions if elected, they make themselves accountable to the people to deliver on their promises. Voters can then reward or punish parties chiefly through the ballot box. And because political parties that are predominantly programmatic facilitate stronger democratic accountability, they are more likely to deliver on nationwide development (e.g. jobs, public services, economic growth, security, poverty reduction) than other types of parties that seek to control state resources primarily for narrower purposes. Among other things, the increased accountability of programmatic parties helps legitimize the democratic system, and the focus on governance and debating policy is conducive to economic development and transparency. Given their focus on nationwide public goods, programmatic parties are also more likely to include broader sectors of society.
The Impact of Programmatic Politics on Good Governance
Programmatic parties tend to focus on policy debate, on the capacities of leaders and the record of the government. This is likely to improve the quality of the government’s performance on economic and other issues over time. In Brazil, India and Zambia, the rise of programmatic parties resulted greater participation of marginalized groups and policies that addressed poverty. In India, programmatic politics increased the importance of “good governance agendas” at the state level politics. In cases in which programmatic party systems developed, such as Brazil, they imposed order and regularity on party politics and on policy formation, which stabilized political systems and made it easier for voters to hold their representatives to account.
Promoting Responsiveness, Transparency and Accountability
Increased accountability often forces the government to be more responsive. Programmatic parties provide concrete programs related to their policy goals in the areas of the economy, development and good governance. Programmatic parties are more likely to be held to account for their performance in areas such as good governance and the performance of the economy. This is because voters will elect (or reelect) parties based on how responsive their programs are to their needs. Likewise, they will not elect ruling parties who did not achieve the policy goals outlined in their program. In clientelistic party systems, voters do hold leaders account, but they do this on the basis of how well the ruling party has taken care of their community, or how well party leaders delivered on their duties as patrons—not on the basis of whether or not they have provided public goods. As a result, governments often go unpunished for major failings, such as presiding over corruption, economic stagnation and inefficient bureaucracies. Because programmatic parties mobilize support on the basis of their policy positions, they are much more likely to be held accountable for poor performance or for failing to deliver on their promises.
Promoting Equity, Inclusiveness and Participation
Often, programmatic politics articulate the policy choices of previously underrepresented communities. In India for example, the emergence of different programmatic parties increased the representation of two very different parts of society within the party system. The needs of the very poorest in society, which had been marginalized by the domination of the Congress party, were given more prominent representation within the party system by the emergence of the BSP.
Even when programmatic parties are not in power, they can influence ruling parties to make policies that address the issues that they raise in their programs. For example, In India the popularity of the BSP drove the Congress-led government to introduce the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, which guaranteed every rural household 100 days of government work per year.
Promoting Effectiveness, Efficiency and the Rule of Law
A number of programmatic parties have also run on explicitly good governance campaigns and subsequently delivered on their promises to clean up corrupt practices and promote efficiency and effectiveness in government. A good example of this is the state of Bihar in India. Bihar was one of India’s poorest states that for decades was synonymous with criminalized, clientelistic politics and economic stagnation—which, following the election of reformist chief minister Nitish Kumar in 2005, experienced annual growth above 11 per cent and a genuine improvement in the quality of government.
Nitish Kumar made notable improvements to a range of public organizations and line departments, while also initiating schemes that provided bicycles to girls that stayed at school and loan schemes for farmers. In both states, effective economic reforms attracted significant international investment, provided new jobs and resulted in higher economic growth. Programmatic parties can also have a positive impact on reducing corruption. Firstly, by mobilizing support around policy issues and the importance of good governance, parties become particularly vulnerable to corruption scandals that could erode their electoral support. Secondly, programmatic parties have less need to misuse state resources because their electoral success is not dependent on their ability to distribute patronage to their supporters. Thus, although all parties in developing countries face funding challenges because their supporters are typically poorly placed to fund the party organization, the incentives to engage in corrupt activities are not as strong as they are for clientelistic parties.