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Reasons political parties lose their representatives. Combining party death and party failure

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  • Julien Van Ostaaijen
  • Sander Jennissen

Abstract

Getting representatives elected is a key feature of political parties. In this article we explore the reasons why once successful parties fail to do so. We propose to better distinguish between the concepts of party failure and party death, and to combine both in one theoretical model, leading to five subcategories of why parties stop having representatives elected. We then use our model to analyse 129 Dutch local parties from the 2014 to the 2022 elections, using several data sources, including election results, party websites and media reports. Our analysis shows that merging with other parties is the most important reason for losing all representatives (merger death), followed by ending their organisation (dissolution death) and not having any representatives elected (electoral failure). We conclude that the model provides a comprehensive view of the final phase of the party lifespan and offers possibilities for further application in local and national politics.

Suggested Citation

  • Julien Van Ostaaijen & Sander Jennissen, 2026. "Reasons political parties lose their representatives. Combining party death and party failure," Local Government Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(2), pages 271-291, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:flgsxx:v:52:y:2026:i:2:p:271-291
    DOI: 10.1080/03003930.2025.2508195
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