Transformations of party clientelism in southern europe in a phase of democratic consolidation

Abstract

This note presents some findings from a cross-country study on the transformations of party clientelism in recently consolidated democracies of Southern Europe, comparing Greece, Portugal and Spain. The results produced here focus on clientelism in employment policies. A number of comparable institutions have been selected in the three countries and in-depth interviews with actors and experts have been conducted. We discuss the role of ideological party profiles and of organizational structures, and we stress the weight of trade unions. We demonstrate that institutional arrangements also affect clientelism, be it at the macro-level of the polity or at the meso-level of sectoral regulations. © 1997 The Swiss Political Science Review.