Prilog daljnjem razvitku delegatskog sistema
Tendencies in the Development of the Delegational System

Summary/Abstract: The survey is based on the preliminary results of an investigation of the 1974 election in Croatia, examined in conjunction with the earlier investigations from the field of electoral sociology, with special reference to electoral behaviour in 1969. The period between 1969 and 1974 is marked by numerous changes in the social and political life of Yugoslavia. Especially significant are the consolidation of unity in the League of Communists, the process of reassertion of basic communist values, and the adoption of the new constitutions. From the standpoint of the electoral system, the new constitutions have introduced the delegational principle in the election of all bodies of the assemblies. The delegacy extends the possibilities for the working people and the citizens to exercise influence on socio-political life and on economic development. The analysis of the statutory regulations introduced in 1974 reveals that, despite some simplification, the electoral system remains a complex process, going through numerous stages and forms of development. The brief time span allotted to the electoral process in 1974 is the cause of numerous organizational and administrative difficulties, and sometimes also of a lack of clarity. A consideration of electoral response from the temporal aspect indicates that the response of the electorate was better than before. An examination of time series of response rates of the voters during the various electoral periods and the comparison of these series with socio-political events and situations demonstrate that a clear and stable policy, on which the electorate has been adequately informed, constitutes a crucial factor of response in elections. The suggestion is further made that economic factors, or economic advancement, alone do not automatically warrant the establishment of new and more progressive socio-economic relations. A correlation analysis of the degree of development measured in terms of per capita national income and of the response of voters in various regions of Croatia has confirmed the earlier results, revealing the existence of two structural types of electoral behaviour: traditional behaviour in underdeveloped regions, where the response is greater due to primary solidarity, and the urban type of behaviour in better developed regions, where the response is relatively lesser. The results of the investigation support the hypothesis that economic advancement by itself does not entail greater participation of voters in elections and that, on the contrary, urbanisation and civilisation, if other kinds of incentive are lacking, represent factors diminishing that participation.

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