Over the last two decades a large and important literature has emerged that uses game theoretic models of bargaining to study legislative coalitions. To test key predictions of these models, we examine the composition of coalition governments from 1946 and 2001. These predictions are almost always expressed in terms of parties’ minimal integer voting weights. We calculate such weights for all p...

Recent research on the role of quasi-democratic institutions in non-democratic regimes finds differential effects of legislatures on economic performance and regime stability across subtypes of non-democracy. This empirically observed variation has however remained a “black box” lacking a micro-theoretical foundation. This paper helps bridge this gap by proposing a theory of two types of non-ru...

Several recent studies explore how American politicians represent the policy views of subconstituencies within the electorate. We extend this perspective to 12 West European democracies over the period 1973–2002 to examine how mainstream parties responded to electoral subconstituencies. We find that parties were highly responsive to the views of opinion leaders, i.e., citizens who regularly eng...

We examine the use of noiseless subsystems for quantum information processing between two parties who do not share a common reference frame. In particular we focus on Bell inequalities in curved spaces and outline a theoretical procedure to test a Bell inequality, demonstrating the wide applicability of noiseless subsystems.

This study examines the role of autocratic ruling party strength in democratic transitions. While impact on regime stability is extensively studied, we know much less about how influences prospects for democratization during Proceeding from recent studies that suggest incumbents often choose to democratize a position rather than weakness, I discuss specific attributes strong organizations wield...

Do “niche” parties—such as Communist, Green, and extreme nationalist parties—adjust their policies in response to shifts in public opinion? Would such policy responsiveness enhance these parties’ electoral support? We report the results of statistical analyses of the relationship between parties’ policy positions, voters’ policy preferences, and election outcomes in eight Western European democ...