Local political scene in Stargard Szczeciński at the beginning of the 2014–2018 term of office Cover Image

Lokalna scena polityczna w Stargardzie Szczecińskim u progu kadencji 2014–2018
Local political scene in Stargard Szczeciński at the beginning of the 2014–2018 term of office

Author(s): Agnieszka Ignasiak
Subject(s): Social Sciences, Electoral systems
Published by: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Szczecińskiego
Keywords: election; local government; president of a town; city council

Summary/Abstract: In 2014 in all communes (except for cities with county rights) councillors were elected in single-member constituencies for the first time. This type of electoral system was intended to help small committees (without such potential as political parties) to participate in elections. Supporters of single-member constituencies hoped that it would lead to stronger bonds between future councillors and their constituents, as well as weaken the strong executive bodies’ position. The purpose of this paper is to present the local political scene in Stargard Szczeciński in relation to the expectations mentioned hereinabove. The author described the distribution of seats in the city council. Moreover, the author presented an analysis indicating that local committees did not manage to weaken the president’s position and change the local political scene, despite gaining seats for their representatives in the legislative body.

  • Issue Year: 13/2015
  • Issue No: 3
  • Page Range: 103-112
  • Page Count: 10
  • Language: Polish