The PS today in the Editions of crunchy

Frédéric Sawicki contributed extensively to the study of political parties, including the PS. It will publish on 27 October, with Rémi Lefebvre, "The company of Socialists." "The PS today", in the Editions of crunchy.

The UMP and PS have significantly increased the number of their members by offering reduced premiums and simplifying membership through mode, among other things, to the Internet. This foreshadows of a change in nature of these parties

More than the mode of accession, it is the power given to these new entrants the designation of the candidate to the presidential which may have structural implications. In the former RPR Members had no power, because the electoral investitures were the prerogative of elected officials and the aircraft. In its fight against the old guard Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy wanted to establish its legitimacy on a vote of the members, but the evolution is only at its beginning. Outside Paris, the UMP activists not designate not list at the municipal heads. In addition, the designation of the candidate in the presidential election resembles more a plebiscite to a competition with equality of means between the candidates. PS, because of the multiple nominations and the place that there is traditionally the vote of the activists, new members will weigh much more.

Is it a failure

Failure date of 1995 when it was decided to designate the Socialist presidential candidate by a direct vote of the members, available then extended to the choice of the first Secretary and the first Secretaries of federations. Until then, indirectly elected prevailed and the PS was living on the idea that the most important decisions were to be taken by the invested people in the party, activists and frameworks. It is a decision the scope at the time was not measured because the Socialist leaders and wanted to regain legitimacy altered by the fratricidal war of the Congress of Rennes and the excesses of the second seven-year term of François Mitterrand. The investiture of 2007 is the extension of 1995.

Is there still a specificity of the new members

One can think that the choice of the presidential candidate is a major motivation for their accession, that they take attention to polls, and that they will be not very sensitive to the arguments developed by Lionel Jospin on the respect of the party, its tradition and its structures. But they are not alone: the older activists are also tired of the fighting between leaders that they perceive as disconnected from the ideological divisions. On the other hand, the image of a PS "party activists" is more a myth than a reality since the 1980s where this training became party of elected officials, also sensitive to the polls. Let us not forget that, just after the presidential election, there is the municipal!

Some fear however that the PS turns into Democrat American whose members mobilized only once every five years to designate the candidate...

It is a France a false image of the US Democratic Party which, in its conventions, associations and trade unions. The PS would be perhaps better if it was organized and its means of mobilization would be compounded marketplace. When we know that France 5 million first round Socialist voters, there are 2 million members and less than 200,000 acceding to the PS, it said that there is a margin of significant progress and that it is up to the PS to adapt its structures in one way or another. Internet is not the panacea, it is only a tool, which affects in more more educated. But its success shows the existence of an expectation to the PS officials were perhaps underestimated.

If Ségolène Royal was invested, it would be the first time that a Socialist leads the party in relying primarily on its popularity

This is true. But the PS pays so to be entirely subjected to the institutions of the Fifth Republic, that customize the power.