CRISIS OF THE PARTY-POLITICAL SYSTEM IN THE EU COUNTRIES: A QUASI-ONE-PARTY SYSTEM AND SEARCH FOR ALTERNATIVE

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to characterize modern changes in the party political system in the countries of the European Union. Electoral processes in a number of European countries, in particular in Germany, Spain and Portugal, indicate the gradual formation of alternative forces that can create new political configurations. The current situation of quasi-one-party system testifies to the deepening crisis of party-political systems. At the same time, in the formation of the prototype of new political associations, each country follows its own path based on its own traditions and political heritage. In Germany, a new phenomenon was the strengthening of the Alternative for Germany opposition party, which defied the quasi-one-party configuration of the Great Coalition. An “alternative for Germany” may influence the creation of a new party and political system. In Spain, a paradoxical political trend is developing, when contradictions within left, right and alternative forces reinforce the tendency to form various forms of minority government. In Portugal, a left-wing government based on the principles of the “carnation revolution”, not abandoning the rules of effective management and neoliberal postulates, is increasingly linking its global politics with China and its large-scale geopolitical projects.