Irish Party System and its changes in last 25 years (the role of Sinn Féin)

• Název práce v češtině: Irský stranický systém a jeho změny v posledních 25 letech se zaměřením na Sinn Féin
• Název v anglickém jazyce: Irish Party System and its changes in last 25 years (the role of Sinn Féin)
• Klíčová slova: Irish Party System, Sinn Féin
• Klíčová slova anglicky: Irish Party System, Sinn Féin
• Akademický rok vypsání: 2016/2017
• Typ práce: diplomová práce
• Jazyk práce: angličtina
• Ústav: Katedra politologie (23-KP)
• Vedoucí / školitel: prof. PhDr. Blanka Říchová, CSc.
• Řešitel: skrytý - zadáno vedoucím/školitelem
• Datum přihlášení: 26.04.2017
• Datum zadání: 24.04.2019
• Datum a čas obhajoby: 18.06.2019 08:00
• Místo konání obhajoby: Jinonice - U Kříže 8, Praha 5, J4019, Jinonice - místn. č. 4019
• Datum odevzdání elektronické podoby: 07.05.2019
• Datum proběhlé obhajoby: 18.06.2019
• Oponenti: Mgr. Jakub Stauber, Ph.D.

Zásady pro vypracování

The thesis will present a one-case study of the party system with in depth analysis of its features and main actors. It will delineate changes of the system with a focus on Sinn Féin.
The thesis will be written using qualitative methods, mainly archival research and content analysis of party programmes. The author will also attempt to provide a quantitative analyses of the parties' programes using a word-scoring analyzing programe.
The main sources for this thesis will be publications concerning the main political parties in Ireland, articles from academic journals, election programms of parties and biographies of main party leaders (Garret Fitzgerald and Gerry Adams).

Seznam odborné literatury

BEAN, Kevin. The new politics of Sinn Féin. Oxford University Press, 2007.ISBN 978-184-6311-444.
BENOIT, Kenneth a Michael LAVER, 2003. Estimating Irish party policy positions using computer wordscoring: the 2002 election - a research note. Irish Political Studies. 18(1), 97-107. DOI: 10.1080/07907180312331293249. ISBN 10.1080/07907180312331293249. Dostupné také z: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07907180312331293249
DE BRÉADÚN, Deaglán, 2015. Power play: the rise of modern Sinn Fein. Merrion Press. ISBN 978-178-5370-311.
FITZGERALD, Garret., 2003. Reflections on the Irish state. Portland, OR: Irish Academic Press. ISBN 07-165-2775-8.
GALLAGHER, Michael a Michael MARSH, 2011. How Ireland voted 2011: the full story of Ireland's earthquake election. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-023-0354-005.
GALLAGHER, Michael a Michael MARSH, How Ireland voted 2007: the full story of Ireland's general election. University of Michigan: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-023-0500-389.
LAVER, Michael, Kenneth BENOIT a John GARRY, 2003. Extracting Policy Positions from Political Texts Using Words as Data. The American Political Science Review. 97(2), 311-331. DOI: 10.1017/S0003055403000698. ISBN 10.1017/S0003055403000698. Dostupné také z: http://www.journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S0003055403000698
MAILLOT, Agnès. New Sinn Féin: Irish republicanism in the twenty-first century. Psychology Press, 2005. 978-041-5321-976.
MAIR, Peter. The Changing Irish Party System: organisation, ideology and electoral competition. London: Pinter, 1987. 978-086-1873-708.
WEEKS, Liam., 2012. Radical or redundant?: minor parties in Irish politics. Dublin: The History Press Ireland. ISBN 978-184-5887-445.

Předběžná náplň práce

The thesis will desribe the Irish party system and its changes in the last 25 years with a focus on Sinn Féin. The thesis will introduce relevant political parties throughout the history of Ireland, their history and programatical evolution in the last 25 years together with an analysis of electoral results from 1992 until today. On this basis, it will proceed to the evaluation of the party system itself, using the Blondel's and Sartori's typologies. The thesis aims to answer following research questions:
1) What were the most significant changes in the Irish party system in the last 25 years?
2) How can the Irish party system in the last 25 years be characterized using Blondel's and Sartori's typologies?
3) How does the party system looks on the Left - Right scale?
4) Is there really no left in Ireland?
5) How did Sinn Féin evolve in the last 25 years?
6) Where does the unexpected electoral support for Sinn Féin come from?
7) What are the prospects of the Irish party system for next years?

Předběžná náplň práce v anglickém jazyce

The topic of this thesis has two parts. First is the Irish party system itself. Usually described as an anomaly, the Irish party system does not fit into common party system rules and is unique in Western Europe. There are several reasons for this. First of all, thre Irish system with its electoral system of proportional representation in the form of single transferable vote but historically the two (and a half) party system does not fit the Duverger's laws. Scholars claim, that there is no left party in Ireland, since both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are center-right parties and the Labor party used to play a minor role in Irish politics.
This thesis will demonstrate how the Irish party system changed throughout its existence, with a focus on the case of Sinn Féin, which is one of the oldest parties on the island, with its roots back in 1905. Almost all parties in Ireland have its roots connected to Sinn Féin - Fianna Fáil was founded by former Sinn Féin member Eamon de Valera, Fine Gael was formed from Cumann na nGaedheal in 1922 in connection to Anglo-Irish treaty and the Workers party was created after the split within Sinn Féin in 1970. During the period when Ireland was fighting for its independence, Sinn Féin was the largest and the most influential party (winning 46,9% in the 1918 Dáil election, which at that time was not recognized by the British authorities). However, after the split in the party in response to the Anglo-Irish Treaty, followed by the departure of de Valera and creation of Fianna Fáil, the party became minor. During the rest of the 20th century, Sinn Féin played a minor role in the official political bodies both in the Republic of Ireland as well as in Northern Ireland. The elections of 2007 profoundly changed this century long phenomenon and in the last elections, Sinn Féin gained the third highest number of votes.