Party literature is largely focused on the rise and success of new parties and their effects on party systems and older parties. This book, on the other hand, provides a valuable and original addition to such literature by analyzing what happens to a party when it enters government for the first time.

Leading contributors assess how these parties, whether old or new, change when entering government by answering a set of questions:

• How and why has their role changed?
• What are the consequences of change?
• What explains the evolution from principled opposition to loyal opposition and eventually to participation in the executive?
• Which characteristics of the parties can be held responsible?
• Which characteristics of the parties’ context should be brought into the picture?
• What have been the effects of the status change on party organization, party ideology and electoral results?

Covering a wide range of European parties such as the Finish Greens, right wing parties (FN, Lega Nord and Alleanza Nazionale) and new parties in Italy, The Netherlands and Sweden to name a few; this book will be of particular interest to scholars and students concerned with party systems, political parties and comparative politics.