Ruling the void: the hollowing of Western democracy

List of tables

Editor's foreward

Introduction

Democracy and indifference

Indifference and renewal

Redefining democracy

1. The passing of popular involvement

Citizen disengagement

Electoral participation

Electorial volatility

Party loyalties

Party membership

Conclusion

2. The challenge to party government

Do parties matter?

Declining electoral cohesion

The problem of party government

The waning of party government

3. The withdrawal of the elites

The century of mass politics

From civil society to the state : the location of parties

The functions of parties

4. Popular democracy and the European Union polity

Being safe for, or from, democracy

The EU polity

Politicization and displacement

Europeanization and depoliticization

The puzzle of apolitical Europe

The EU as a construct

Conclusion : Euroscepticism and polity-scepticism

Appendix : a note on additional tables

Bibliography

Index.