# Cartel party theory

Part of the Politics series :
Party politics :
Political spectrum
Left-wing
Far-leftCentre-left
Centre
Centre-leftRadical centreCentre-right
Right-wing
Centre-rightFar-right :
Major ideologies
Agrarianism
Anarchism
Christian democracy
Communism
Conservatism
Environmentalism
Fascism
Feminism
Green politics
Hindutva
Islamism
Liberalism
Libertarianism
Monarchism
Nationalism
Populism
Progressivism
Classical radicalism
Republicanism
Social democracy
Socialism
Syncretism
Third Way :
Types
Bloc party
Elite party
Cartel party
Competitive
Catch-all party
Entrepreneurial party
Ethnic party
Major party / Minor party
Mass party
Ruling party
Opposition party
Parliamentary opposition
Party of power
Official party status
Single-issue party
Transnational / International :
Leaders and organization
Backbencher
Caucus
Caucus chair
Frontbencher
Lead candidate
Leader of the Opposition
Majority leader
Minority leader
Political faction
Parliamentary leader
Party chair
Party leader
Party spokesperson
Secretary
Shadow cabinet
Whip :
Internal elections
Primary election
Leadership election
Open list
Party convention/conference
Leadership convention :
Party discipline
Conscience vote
Crossing the floor
Party discipline
Party line
Party-line vote
Party switching
Whip :
Party systems
One-party
Dominant-partyTwo-partyMulti-party
Non-partisan :
Coalitions between parties
Parliamentary group
Divided government
Coalition government
Confidence and supply
Consensus government
Cordon sanitaire
Grand coalition
Hung parliament
Majority government
Minority government
National unity government
Rotation government :
Lists of political parties
Ruling parties by country
Political parties by region
Banned political parties :
Politics portal :
vte :
In politics, a cartel party or cartel political party is a party which uses the resources of the state to maintain its position within the political system, colluding with other parties in a way similar to a cartel. The premise is that the parties do not compete with one another (being "post-political"), but rather collude to protect their collective interests and keep small outsider parties from being viable.
Richard Katz and Peter Mair argue that "parties in Western Europe have adapted themselves to declining levels of participation and involvement in party activities by not only turning to resources provided by the state but by doing so in a collusive manner".

## Concept

The concept of the cartel party was first proposed in 1992 as a means of drawing attention to the patterns of inter-party collusion or cooperation rather than competition; and as a way of emphasising the influence of the state on party development. In definitional terms, the cartel party is a type of party that emerges in advanced democratic polities and that is characterised by the interpenetration of party and state and by a pattern of inter-party collusion. With the development of the cartel party, the goals of politics become self-referential, professional and technocratic, and what little inter-party competition remains becomes focused on the efficient and effective management of the polity. The election campaigns that are conducted by cartel parties are capital-intensive, professionalized and centralized, and are organized on the basis of a strong reliance on the state for financial subventions and for other benefits and privileges. Within the party, the distinction between party members and non-members becomes blurred, in that through primaries, electronic polling, and so on, the parties invite all of their supporters, members or not, to participate in party activities and decision-making. Above all, with the emergence of cartel parties, politics becomes increasingly depoliticised.

## Contrast with mass parties

The cartel party is contrasted with the traditional view of the mass party, where political parties organize around the issues of large numbers of people. Mass parties are often linked to specific groups with specific policy needs and compete in elections to advance their constituents needs. Mass parties traditionally had little formal support from the government and were largely financed and organized from civil society. In Western Europe the growth of socialist parties in the 19th and early 20th century are traditionally linked to the growth of mass parties, who emerged in working class communities to advance issues like universal suffrage and labor reform.

## Reasons for growth
### Decline of mass parties

The mass party as an organizational model declined in many countries in the later 20th century due to political parties' gradual moderation of policy ideas and breakdown of traditional group identities. Party membership has been in decline in many democracies, which has led to a decline in financial and personal investment in parties from the electorate.

### Political campaigning

To compensate for decline in popular support, parties have turned to larger and more expensive political campaigns. Parties have turned to increasingly expensive forms of campaigning that rely on large amounts of public subsidies and outside political contributions.