Danny Rye | Liverpool Hope University (original) (raw)

Books by Danny Rye

Political parties are ideal subjects for the study of power because they are specific sites in wh... more Political parties are ideal subjects for the study of power because they are specific sites in which it is produced and organised, fought over, captured and lost. However, the literature on political parties largely lacks an explicit and systematic theorisation of power as it is exercised and operates in them. As a result, the study of parties has not kept up with developments in theoretical approaches to power and power relations. For example, the failure to recognise how power works through constituting subjects who are empowered as effective agents with appropriate skills and capacities is a major lacuna in the literature. Parties are not only electoral machines or vehicles for personal ambition: they are organisations, complex relations of individuals, rules and rituals. An approach to power in parties should reflect this.

To this end, I propose in this book a framework of power which accounts for political parties in all their complexity. My aim is to introduce some of the more nuanced and sophisticated insights of political theory to the analysis of political parties without dismissing the benefits of some of the more established ways of looking at power. My understanding of power is therefore rich and diverse, derived from diverse intellectual traditions, including behaviouralist, structuralist and Foucauldian accounts. My framework encapsulates individual agency, the strategic mobilisation of rules and norms, rationalisation and bureaucracy, the constitution of subjectivities and the micro-level discipline of bodies. Theory is employed in conjunction with original interview and archive research on the British Labour Party to construct an account of how power operates in party settings. This provides a unique and, I argue, much richer perspective on the exercise and operation of power in political parties than has been offered before.

Journal Articles by Danny Rye

Interest Groups and Advocacy, 2024

Success is an important aspect of evaluating activism because it is a vehicle for political chang... more Success is an important aspect of evaluating activism because it is a vehicle for political change. However, the idea of 'success' has proved difficult to capture in easily measurable ways. This has led some analysts to overlook its complexities and others to avoid the idea altogether, instead focusing on impacts, consequences and other seemingly less loaded terms. The definition of activism success therefore remains unsetled and under-studied. This article argues that an important perspective in evaluating activism is that of the activists themselves. What constitutes success (or not) for them must be an important consideration in defining and analysing it because it underpins the sense of purpose and value they put on what they do and helps to sustain them in the longer term. A workshop conducted with grassroots activists in Liverpool provides useful insights towards this. The analysis of their reflections on successful activism suggests that it is still an important idea, but a more complex and nuanced one that is multi-dimensional, political and contested. It reflects attitudes to a wider range of outcomes, the value of participation and attitudes to power, factors that analysts should consider incorporating into future studies.

British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 2020

This article contributes to scholarship on the relationship between political parties and social ... more This article contributes to scholarship on the relationship between political parties and social movements by proposing a new model of 'party-driven movements' to understand the formation of a new hybrid model within existing political parties in majoritarian systems. In our two case studies-Momentum's relationship with the UK Labour Party and the Bernie Sanders-inspired 'Our Revolution' with the US Democratic Party-we highlight the conditions under which they emerge and their key characteristics. We analyse how party-driven movements express an ambivalence in terms of strategy (working inside and outside the party), political aims (aiming to transform the party and society) and organisation (in the desire to maintain autonomy whilst participating within party structures). Our analysis suggests that such party-driven movements provide a potential answer to political parties' alienation from civil society and may thus be a more enduring feature of Anglo-American majoritarian party systems than the current literature suggests.

Politics

Political parties have historically provided a key means by which citizens gain representation in... more Political parties have historically provided a key means by which citizens gain representation in the state, with parties enabling participation, integration, aggregation, conflict management and linkage (Sartori, 2005). Over recent years parties' representative credentials have declined and new organisations have emerged as vehicles of representation (Mair, 2009). What is, however, unclear is the extent to which these new organisations have taken on the representative functions parties are traditionally seen to have performed. In this article, we examine Citizens UK and 38 Degrees as indicative examples to argue that, whilst opportunities for participation and integration can be found, aspects of aggregation, conflict management and linkage are no longer being performed. Diagnosing this change, we argue that these shifts in representation are having significant but as yet unrecognised consequences for how citizens relate to and engage with contemporary politics.

As a result of the vote to leave the European Union, party politics as usual, if there ever was s... more As a result of the vote to leave the European Union, party politics as usual, if there ever was such a thing, has been shaken. The referendum itself and the ensuing debate about Brexit has exposed the instabilities, contingencies and fragilities at the heart of the main parliamentary parties. We do not yet know what the effect of this will be, but British political parties face key challenges and opportunities as a result, and how they respond to them could have major implications for them and for the shape of the party system. The political virtuosity with which political leaders and politicians respond to the Fortuna of events can have profound consequences. For British political parties, then, the aftermath of the referendum may be one of these moments. Brexit presents challenging issues and potential opportunities for parties' stability and success. It has presented challenges for party leadership and management by exposing or sharpening existing divisions and creating new ones, opening questions about future direction. In this short article, I will briefly outline some of these issues and what they might mean for the parties.

This is a draft paper which examines the extent to which reforms to the Labour Party’s internal o... more This is a draft paper which examines the extent to which reforms to the Labour Party’s internal organisation under Ed Miliband’s leadership empowered members or represented a continuation of the controlled, managerial regime of Tony Blair. It makes use of a framework for analysing power in political organisations which accounts for its operation in several different modes: at individual and organisational levels, in culture and practice and in the techiques and technologies employed in the pursuit of party goals. Key aspects of the reforms are discussed, including community organising, flexibility in the organisation of local parties, the idea of candidate contracts, the role of training and the impact of the registered supporters scheme, particularly on the franchise for leadership elections. The analysis suggests that whilst there was a genuine desire to give more power to members and local parties, it was tempered by a reluctance to fully relinquish managerial control. Empowering measures were taken, but important safeguards preserving the control of the party’s parliamentary leadership were built-in. The failure of MPs to properly use these safeguards in the 2015 leadership election, however, has opened up the possibility of further, more radical change.

Political Studies. Definitive version now available via early view (link below)

Political parties are both vehicles for the pursuit of power and specific sites in which it is pr... more Political parties are both vehicles for the pursuit of power and specific sites in which it is produced, organised, fought over, captured and lost. However, the literature on parties has not kept up with theoretical developments and largely lacks an explicit, systematic theorisation of power. To address this, a framework of power is proposed in this article that introduces some of the more nuanced and sophisticated insights of political theory to the analysis of parties without dismissing the benefits of more established approaches. Power is approached as a rich, multilayered concept, derived from diverse intellectual traditions. The framework acts as a heuristic which encapsulates individual agency, the strategic mobilisation of rules and norms, rationalisation and bureaucracy, the constitution of agents and the micro-level discipline of bodies. This provides a more satisfying framework for analysing power in parties than has previously been offered.

This is a uncorrected draft of an article developed from my previous IPSA conference paper and su... more This is a uncorrected draft of an article developed from my previous IPSA conference paper and submitted for consideration to the Journal of Political Power (http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rpow21). It extends the framework I have previously developed for the analysis of political parties by focusing on the question of empowering people as effective political citizens. The finished, published version can be accessed here: http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rpow21/8/3

Essays and Reviews by Danny Rye

ryed@hope.ac.uk @dannyrye The first clause of Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty states: " Any Membe... more ryed@hope.ac.uk @dannyrye The first clause of Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty states: " Any Member State may decide to withdraw from the Union in accordance with its own constitutional requirements. " But as has become apparent, in the case of the UK, nobody really knows what those requirements actually are and a significant amount of energy has been consumed over the last two years in disputes over what the respective roles, responsibilities and powers of Parliament and the executive are, what the precise status of the referendum is and who, if anyone, is responsible for interpreting it. The Miller case exposed confusion and uncertainty even over who had the power to begin the process. There is no clear constitutional guidance, either, on how or by whom it should be executed, scrutinised or concluded and, crucially, how and by whom the outcomes should be approved or legitimised. This messiness reflects the UK's famously uncodified constitution, which means its basic rules are not systematically laid out in a single, document which governs the relationships of key elements of the political system. This means that the UK constitution is very flexible which has served it well in some respects, not least in adapting to European Union membership. But it means, above all, that the constitution is political. Above all, sovereignty and power in the British constitution has not been a matter for the courts, as in many codified systems, but has rather been established and maintained by political struggle, which is why the resolution of the question of who should trigger Article 50 by the courts is somewhat problematic in the UK context. A key principle of the British constitution is the notion of 'parliamentary sovereignty' – that Parliament has the sole right to make or unmake law in its territory. For many Eurosceptics, it is this that made the British system incompatible with EU membership, which (as confirmed by the Factortame Case in 1991) instituted a higher body of law over that of statute. But this was merely a qualification of Parliamentary sovereignty, and one which Parliament imposed upon itself and (as Brexit perhaps proves) can also remove. However, even if that qualification is eventually removed, there are, unfortunately for Parliamentary Sovereignty enthusiasts, many more than that. Significant constitutional changes made under the Blair and Brown governments (including devolution and the creation of a Supreme Court), as well as Cameron's (including fixed term parliaments, the creation of regional mayors and English Votes for English Laws), whilst by no means part of any strategic masterplan, have also de facto altered Parliamentary sovereignty. In some respects it has been strengthened – the Prime Minister no longer has the power to dissolve Parliament against its will. In other respects, it has weakened: it has lost control over key areas of domestic policy, including personal taxation, to the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Assembly. One of the more significant changes in recent years, it turns out, has been the use of referendums to endorse or reject many such reform proposals. It means that, as Vernon Bogdanor has pointed out that a 'new principle … of the sovereignty of the people' has entered into the British constitution (Bogdanor 2016, 314).

Danny Rye considers Labour's future after 8 June, if the party does lose the election and the con... more Danny Rye considers Labour's future after 8 June, if the party does lose the election and the continuing prospects of a realignment of the wider British left under the Labour Party's tent.

This post originally appeared on the LSE British Politics and Policy blog

Neither individualism nor therapeutic withdrawal from the political arena are enough to empower p... more Neither individualism nor therapeutic withdrawal from the political arena are enough to empower people to make the fundamental changes needed in their lives. An essay for opendemocracy.net

Jeremy Corbyn looks set to win the Labour leadership election, despite initially being pegged as ... more Jeremy Corbyn looks set to win the Labour leadership election, despite initially being pegged as a no-hope also-ran. The conservative right are cheering him on, seeing the Islington North MP as ushering in a period of Conservative Party hegemony. But is he being underestimated? Danny Rye argues that a Corbyn-led party could see a realignment of not just the Labour Party, but British politics, in a way which brings the traditional left back into the mainstream.

Book Reviews by Danny Rye

Book Review / Essay This is a draft version of a published review in Parliamentary Affairs - publ... more Book Review / Essay
This is a draft version of a published review in Parliamentary Affairs - published version can be found by clicking the links below

Scholarship on parties often fixates on 'decline': their retreat from civil society and the indif... more Scholarship on parties often fixates on 'decline': their retreat from civil society and the indifference and disdain with which the public regards them. This book, thus provides a refreshing and welcome defence of partisanship as a 'distinctive activity' (p. 209) that is normatively desirable for a thriving democratic politics. Through theoretical reflection on an impressive range of literature and empirical material, and drawing on an extensive knowledge of political theory, the authors draw the 'normative presuppositions' structuring the activities of practicing partisans (p. 4). They approach the task over ten chapters and in three broad sections covering the relationships between the partisan and the political community at large, the party itself, and the wider political system. They construct a picture of partisanship as a distinctly moral enterprise, critically different from factions or interest groups in their purpose to harness power for the benefit of society as a whole rather than the interests of a section of it. A key element, and perhaps the most convincing, is the middle section which discusses the value of political commitment and the ethical ties that underwrite it. Here the important developmental roles that parties can play in shaping engaged citizens are identified. Parties can do this because they provide a permanent organisational structure and a means of engendering, supporting and sustaining principled political commitment, guarding against disengagement and disaffection This is underpinned by obligation, a key feature of the party's moral order. Partisans hold obligations not just to present participants but to their predecessors (for example by means of a founding document or established traditions), and their successors too. This understanding of the party as an ongoing, intergenerational, collective project provides both meaning to participants and an important corrective against opportunistic elitism that focuses on power at all costs. Whilst this implies a potential for organisational conservatism, at the same time, it is part of what makes parties capable of striking the balance between spontaneity and organisation essential to successful, sustainable revolutionary movements. This underlines the capacity to not only mobilise challenges to the existing order, but to shape and embed a new one. The importance of this book is that it sets out in systematic fashion, an argument for partisanship which is couched in often deeply moral terms. It provides the tools with which to conduct a normative defence of partisanship at a time when parties need defending perhaps more than ever.

Other by Danny Rye

Power Moves (Carnegie UK Trust / RAND Europe), pp. 20-43

The literature on party political discipline is relatively small and narrow in focus. It tends to... more The literature on party political discipline is relatively small and narrow in focus. It tends to focus almost exclusively on parliamentary parties. Where it does bring the extra-parliamentary party in, it is simply as a variable acting upon the behaviour of MPs. Furthermore, a general problem in the literature is that it lacks a developed understanding of power. For the most part, power is not directly theorised, and the underlying assumptions of much of the analysis seems to indicate a relatively simple agentic approach. This means that analysis often fails to grasp the extent to which discipline can be conceived as an underlying principle of organisation that working on a variety of different levels throughout the party as a whole. I argue that the study of discipline in political parties would therefore benefit from the utilisation of alternative understandings of power, it's modes and sites of operation. For example, power can be seen as a macro-level force, operating through 'social structures' and the disciplinary effect of the routinisation of action. Alternatively, power works at a micro-level, through the productive, detailed application of techniques that sit outside of formal institutions and structures. I argue, therefore, that discipline in political parties works at a number of different levels, each corresponding to a different understanding of power, where it is situated and how it operates. To this end, I propose a 'topography', or map, of power that can be used as a framework for the analysis of discipline to be applied to the political party as a whole organisation.

Political parties are organisations in which power operates at many different levels. It is there... more Political parties are organisations in which power operates at many different levels. It is therefore surprising that in studies of parties the treatment of power has remained wedded to 'traditional' questions of sovereignty and relationships of command and obedience. Power is not just a feature of hierarchies and conflict, but is also embedded at a micro-level in the kinds of techniques and practices of politics that may not always be noticed as power.

A century ago Robert Michels proposed that despite its necessity to the empowerment the powerless... more A century ago Robert Michels proposed that despite its necessity to the empowerment the powerless, it was an 'iron law' that organisation would end up subjugating them under oligarchy. His tragic vision remains a powerful contribution to how analysts think of power in organisations. However, rather than accepting this gloomy prognosis, my paper asks what kind of organisation can ensure (as far as possible) that ordinary men and women flourish and that domination is kept in check. Drawing on different theoretical approaches to power, tools will be developed for evaluating organisations with social and political goals (OSPs) in terms of how they empower or disempower members and participants in a variety of different ways. Thus, firstly, I draw on differing approaches to power -including behaviouralism, structuration and Foucauldian notions -that illuminate relevant aspects of organisational life: the role of individual actors, of rules and decision-making processes, the impersonal power of procedure and administration, the constitutive power of practices, habits and organisational routines, and the disciplinary effects of techniques like marketing and campaign organisation. Secondly, a key distinction is made between what, in these different settings, empowers people and what disempowers them, which requires us to separate analytically conceptualisations of power over and those of power to.

Published Version: Rye, D. 2014. Michels, Robert (1876–1936). The Encyclopedia of Political Thought. 2362–2363., Sep 15, 2014

Robert Michels was a man of contradictions: a Marxist and a syndicalist from a bourgeois backgr... more Robert Michels was a man of contradictions: a Marxist and a syndicalist from a bourgeois background; a German academic and pacifist who became an apologist for Italian nationalism and fascism. As such, he embodied the great political dilemma of his time between democracy and autocracy, which is reflected in his most important contribution to social and
political science: the “iron law of oligarchy.” This theory elaborated concerns about the nature of elites and democratic organizations that remain salient today.

Conference Presentations by Danny Rye

PSA Conservatives and Strategic Communications Conference, 2018

Interest Groups and Advocacy, 2024

British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 2020

Politics

Political Studies. Definitive version now available via early view (link below)

This post originally appeared on the LSE British Politics and Policy blog

Power Moves (Carnegie UK Trust / RAND Europe), pp. 20-43

Published Version: Rye, D. 2014. Michels, Robert (1876–1936). The Encyclopedia of Political Thought. 2362–2363., Sep 15, 2014

PSA Conservatives and Strategic Communications Conference, 2018

Interest groups & advocacy, Apr 15, 2024

This case study examines the Government's decision in 2005 to establish new nutritional ... more This case study examines the Government's decision in 2005 to establish new nutritional standards for school meals. This case is well known for the part played by Jamie Oliver, the celebrity chef, but there were many others involved too. This study aims to identify some of those ...

Politics, 2017

Political parties have historically provided a key means by which citizens gain representation in... more Political parties have historically provided a key means by which citizens gain representation in the state, with parties enabling participation, integration, aggregation, conflict management, and linkage. Over recent years, parties’ representative credentials have declined and new organisations have emerged as vehicles of representation. What is, however, unclear is the extent to which these new organisations have taken on the representative functions parties are traditionally seen to have performed. In this article, we examine Citizens UK and 38 Degrees as indicative examples to argue that, while opportunities for participation and integration can be found, aspects of aggregation, conflict management and linkage are no longer being performed. Diagnosing this change, we argue that these shifts in representation are having significant but as yet unrecognised consequences for how citizens relate to and engage with contemporary politics.

Parliamentary Affairs, 2016

In just two years Podemos, from a loose collection of Indignados, have become a significant elect... more In just two years Podemos, from a loose collection of Indignados, have become a significant electoral force. In the December 2015 election, they trailed the centre-left Spanish Socialist Worker's Party (PSOE) by less than 1.5%. By the time you read this, they may well have overtaken them. This dramatic shift in the political landscape underlines how the post-Franco two-party political hegemony appears to be teetering, providing an opportunity to change the rules of the game. But can Podemos deliver a knockout blow to the old regime? And even if it does, is it enough to bring about significant change? Despite the title, Iglesias' main concern in this book is Spain. Its political history-especially the legacy of the Civil War-weighs heavily on it. However, as this book argues, international elites are at least as much to blame for Spanish woes as domestic ones. Indeed, the author-and the leader of Podemos-observes, power belongs largely to 'the caste', a global network unfettered by loyalty to nation states. The key institutional supports for global neoliberalism-including the IMF, the World Bank and the so-called 'troika'-has drained power away from states, reinforcing the power of financial elites for whom the 2008 crash and the ensuing debt crisis was a pretext for 'a great counter revolution'. The broader European dimension of the financial crisis and its impact, means the questions he addresses are pertinent beyond Spain. In particular, how can the power of these elites be challenged and countered? Iglesias answers this with analogy: politics can be like a game of chess in which cunning and skill are necessary to outmanouever opponents. However, even if the powerful can be beaten on the chessboard, they are only likely to give way 'when they are knocked out in the boxing ring' (19). Thus, his broadly Marxist outlook contains Weberian and Machiavellian dimensions which recognises that politics concerns the struggle for power and power, ultimately, is the capacity to realise one's will. However, as he also recognises, agenda-setting, the capacity to define the terms of debate, to shape 'perceptions, cognitions and preferences' (as Lukes has put it) are means by which elites sustain their power. Thus, aside from direct conflict, the struggle for power has at least three additional dimensions: culture, rules and organisation.

The Encyclopedia of Political Thought, Sep 15, 2014

Robert Michels was a man of contradictions: a Marxist and syndicalist from a bourgeois background... more Robert Michels was a man of contradictions: a Marxist and syndicalist from a bourgeois background; a German academic and pacifist who became an apologist for Italian nationalism and fascism. As such, he embodied the great political dilemma of his time between democracy and autocracy, which is reflected in his most important contribution to social and political science: the “iron law of oligarchy.” This theory elaborated concerns about the nature of elites and democratic organizations that remain salient today. Keywords: elite theory; oligarchy; organizational theory

A review of a book by White and Ypi which seeks to develop a normative justification for partisan... more A review of a book by White and Ypi which seeks to develop a normative justification for partisanship as a distinctive practice.

Examines the key challenges and opportunities facing British political parties in the post-EU ref... more Examines the key challenges and opportunities facing British political parties in the post-EU referendum landscape.

The British Journal of Politics and International Relations

This article contributes to scholarship on the relationship between political parties and social ... more This article contributes to scholarship on the relationship between political parties and social movements by proposing the concept of ‘party-driven movements’ to understand the formation of a new hybrid model within existing political parties in majoritarian systems. In our two case studies – Momentum’s relationship with the UK Labour Party and the Bernie Sanders-inspired ‘Our Revolution’ with the US Democratic Party – we highlight the conditions under which they emerge and their key characteristics. We analyse how party-driven movements express an ambivalence in terms of strategy (working inside and outside the party), political aims (aiming to transform the party and society) and organisation (in the desire to maintain autonomy while participating within party structures). Our analysis suggests that such party-driven movements provide a potential answer to political parties’ alienation from civil society and may thus be a more enduring feature of Anglo-American majoritarian party...

Political Parties and the Concept of Power, 2014