000			01804pab a2200181 454500
008			180718b2013 xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
100			_aRysavy, Dan
245			_aSize and local democracy: the case of Czech municipal representatives
260			_c2013
300			_ap.833-852.
362			_aDec
520			_aThe municipal structure of the Czech Republic experienced a wave of fragmentation after the fall of the communist regime. As a result, most Czech municipalities today have populations of only a few hundred inhabitants. This situation creates specific conditions for the democratic functioning of local representative bodies. In this paper we focus on two features of Czech local government. First, we deal with electoral competitiveness in Czech municipalities; second, we analyse councillors' accountability to voters, their readiness to stand for re-election and their electoral success in successive elections. Based on an analysis of data on individual candidates and elected councillors in four successive terms, wedemonstrate that the willingness to stand for election and re-election does not decrease over time; however, the choice among different candidates is limited in the smallest municipalities. Thus, the data show a reduced willingness to stand for re-election and an extraordinarily high chance of reelection in smaller municipalities. This finding weakens the general assumption about higher accountability of elected officials in small municipalities. On a more general level, we conclude that Czech local government has some features of small political systems with infrequent occurrence of major election conflicts. - Reproduced.
650			_aLocal government
700			_aBernard, Josef
773			_aLocal Government Studies
908			_aN
909			_a103428
999			_c103424 _d103424