The Scottish National Party

During their lifetime, political parties face a range of strategic dilemmas. Some involve the dilemma between vote, office and policy success (Strøm 1990; De Winter 1998: 238-40). Some revolve around the exact nature of party goals, policies or coalition strategies. However, in some cases, parties also face some fundamental strategic and organisational choices about whether to become parties at all in terms of standing candidates at elections, establishing distinct party platforms and operating exclusive membership through an organisation that is independent of other political parties. As will be discussed below in the case of the Scot-tish National Party (SNP), such strategic and organisational choices are by no means straightforward but can involve vigorous internal debate, divisions and splits. Such choices might also not be one-off events, but rather recurrent due to fluctuating levels of electoral success and occasions when alternative strategies appear attractive. Both endogenous and exogenous factors are responsible for such developments in the life of a party, as they face strategic choices and organisational challenges (McAllister 1981: 238). To make sense of such strategic and organisational choices and their effect on party development, this chapter applies Pedersen's model of party lifespans to the SNP. It will examine the impact of passing through Pedersen's different lifespan thresholds on SNP organisation (the party on the ground, party in central office and party in public office) and party goals. It will also focus on key events in relation to the SNP's success in passing the thresholds of representation and relevance/gover-nance, which came in 1999 in the shape of electoral reform and the establishment of the regional level of government in Scotland.In doing so, it recognises that Pedersen's model was a heuristic device (Pedersen 1982: 3), so that there will be no exact conceptual or chronological fit between the model and the SNP's political development. Indeed, the manner in which the SNP passes through the various thresholds is definitely not chronological or sequential, though it does occur at the national level of elections (1934-97) and only latterly at the regional level (1999-2007). In addition, the party's success in surpassing the various thresholds is accompanied by organisational growth and a level of institutionalisa-tion, and without electoral alliances with other political parties, even when it formed the government in Scotland in 2007. Furthermore, in