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Copyright (c) 2021 Александар Джокич, Вадим Петров Рошманов
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Abstract
The article focuses on the influence of the proportional electoral system with closed party lists in ethnically divided societies on the emergence of radical ethnic parties and on ethnic voting. The subject of the study is the political, electoral and party systems of Serbia and Bulgaria between 1991 and 2020. The following factors are considered: preservation of political stability, presence of radical ethnic parties within the party systems of the two states, and ethnic voting as a mode of conduct for voters, as well as the way to evade the phenomenon undertaking an institutional reform of the electoral system. The impact of a proportional system with closed party lists on ethnic voting and the formation of radical ethnic parties in Serbia and Bulgaria is analyzed, which is relevant in the Balkans as a whole. As a result of the study, the authors propose a shift from a proportional system with closed party lists to a single transferable vote system as a way of countering the rise of radical ethnic parties and of overcoming the destabilization of Balkan political systems.
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References
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