Funkcjonalno-strukturalna interpretacja ewolucji partii politycznych

This article explores the development and the main changes of the party organization in contemporary Europe. In my research I make an attempt to answer the question of how European parties are changing and what is the main outcome of that change. The article presents a short analysis of various models of parties that can be located in terms of relationship between citizens, voters, party’s partisans and the state. Models of party’s evolution in Europe are helpful in understanding the premises of contemporary inter- party changes. The main hypothesis taken under consideration is Katz and Mair’s conclusion that the parties become agents of the state and employ the resources of the state to ensure their own survival. Providing the general idea of the parties evolution and the dependency between different elements of the system, I introduced an analysis dividing the political reality into three coherent subsystems, called after Katz and Mair the party’s faces in which each of the indicates different patterns of involvement in the functionalistic and structural changes in party organization. The first part of the article quaintly entitled the party on the ground focuses on the influence of the political and social cleavages, party organization and the electoral strategies used in order to encapsulate the society. The main question is what had happened in the European societies that the linkage between the party and the citizens had to change so dramatically and what are the key interdependencies between party organization and the society? The second part is a vision of the party in central office and it gives information about historical evolution in the party organization and its influence on the elites’ position in the party system. Therefore, this crucial part of the article shows how the organization inside is needed to be changed to fulfill their function in the system. The last part of the article- the party in public office shows connections and evolution in the relation between party and the state. Thanks to historical perspective there are more evident links between main function fulfilled by the parties and the increasing position of the state in resolving every day problems. The core question is whether it is possible that parties will be incorporated into state and politicians will tread their functions more professionally. Furthermore, according to Katz and Mair’s hypothesis election will be changed into “confirmation of trust” more then real choice of voters. Using the holistic analyze I would like to show the dynamics of party evolution. Different models of the party give us the vision of encapsulated parties in the system in general and the main influence on different elements in particular. This research illuminates that parties are strongly connected with the society and the state. Furthermore, there is no tangible evidence which could approve that Katz and Mair’s hypothesis is true. Parties are still interested in penetration of the subsystems. The association with the voters is one of the crucial parts in political strategy to protect their own survival