New Parties and Parliamentary Persistence in Europe: The Effects of Party Organization on Re-election

The question of why certain new parties become a regular presence on the political arena lies at the core of extensive research efforts. However, we know little about how party organization can influence party persistence. This paper aims to fill this gap in the literature and analyzes whether the way new political parties organize, including their use of modern communication technologies, has an impact on their persistence after they make initial breakthrough and gain seats in national parliaments. We provide a comparative perspective that covers countries in both Western and Eastern Europe, by contrasting the organizational features of new parties with those of old established parties. The analysis includes approximately 60 parties in eight countries and covers one and a half decades (2004-2020). The data comes from primary data collection between February and June 2021.