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Political faction
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A political faction is presently an informal grouping of individuals, especially within a political organization, such as a political party, a trade union, or other group with some kind of political purpose (referred to in this article as the “broader organization”). It may also be referred to as a power bloc, or a voting bloc. The individuals within a faction are united in one common goal or set of common goals for the broader organization, not shared by all of that broader organization's members. They band together as a way of achieving these goals and advancing their own position with the broader organization.
A political faction could thus be described as a “party within a party”. It is important to note, however, that political factions are not limited to political parties; they can and frequently do form within any group that has some sort of political aim or purpose.
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Before the introduction of the modern parliamentary model led to the emergence of modern political parties, organized for electoral campaign and political working (as in a political fraction within a legislative assembly), there were often more informal political tendencies, which are often termed party of faction in modern languages. The Latin word factio denoted originally either of the chariot teams that were organized professionally (not unlike gladiator schools, but the lethal nature of that entertainment meant few performers lasted long enough to build up similar crowd loyalty to the 'team', while the fighters rarely actually teamed up, but rather fought duels or beasts) by private companies in ancient Rome, each recognizable by characteristic colour, and arousing similar supporter hysteria as say modern soccer (known to start riots between fans of opposing teams in England and Europe and which once started a war in Central America). In time, political currents -'ideological' parties as the senatorial and popular lost their function under the Principate- could get associated with such a team, how exactly is unclear (maybe predominantly recruiting in certain parts of the city, were mainly certain classes and professions lived?). In Byzantine Constantinople, only two such chariot factions remained, blue and green, which have repeatedly made or broken the claims of candidates to the imperial throne.
Note: Occasionally, the term "faction" is still used more or less as a synonym for political party (but "with opprobrious sense, conveying the imputation of selfish or mischievous ends or turbulent or unscrupulous methods", according to the Oxford English Dictionary). In his Dictionary, Samuel Johnson (a Tory) dismissively defined Whig as "the name of a faction". Similarly, in the tenth instalment of the Federalist Papers, James Madison defines a faction as "a number of citizens, whether amounting to a minority or majority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community." In plain English this is a group that pursues self interest at the expense of the common good.
The aims of a political faction are as diverse as the different types of bodies within which they appear. Typically, however, they include: advancing a particular policy or policy agenda within the broader organisation; preventing the adoption of alternative policies; and supporting given individuals to positions of power within the broader organisation. A faction can primarily be based around supporting a given person or group, or a single major aim, with little in the way of common agenda, or it can have a comprehensive and definitive set of policies. Either way, factional politics typically revolve around personality, with a few individuals playing key roles: acting as a magnet for like-minded people, leading the activities of the faction, and acting as a prominent voice for the shared objectives of the faction. Such individuals can be referred to by a variety of names, such as “powerbrokers” or “factional chiefs”.
Where factions differ is the amount of organisation and internal structure they possess. Most factions are very loose organisations, having no definitive list of members and little in the way of common goals besides the advancement of particular individuals. Some factions, however, have a formal internal structure, with membership lists, regular meetings, official positions – such as negotiators, conveners, whips, and organisers, - and a definitive policy position on every issue affecting the broader organisation. Such factions will typically be binding – that is, they rely upon all members casting their votes in accordance with the pre-ordained official stance of the faction.
In political organizations that are democratic in structure, factions rely heavily on securing enough votes to win important ballots. This process is referred to as “doing the numbers”. Having the numbers will allow the faction to push policies it supports and elect its members to powerful positions within the broader organisation.
If one faction develops within an organisation, there will usually be at least one other that develops in opposition to it. Opposing factions will try to match each others’ level of organisation and internal discipline, but will also engage in negotiations and trade-offs to ensure that the broader organisation’s activities are not compromised and that every group has a chance to obtain at least some of its goals.
Key to the operation of an organised faction is the existence of a power base. This will typically be some office, division or branch of the broader organisation over which the faction has effective control. Sometimes a power base may be an external or affiliated organisation that is involved with the broader organisation in some way.
A power base serves several key functions:
- It acts as a recruitment centre for new members, and promotes homogeneity within the membership (crucial for maintaining factional cohesion);
- It can be used as an organising centre for factional events and activities;
- It functions as a springboard, advancing the career of selected factional members and allowing them to gain skills that will increase their effectiveness and clout.
The existence of a factional system can have serious negative consequences for a broader organization.
If factional strife becomes intensive and public, the broader organization may suffer from perceptions of disunity. Taken one step further, if the conflict is particularly severe, it may cause ruptures within the organisation that seriously impede its effectiveness, leading to break-up or collapse of the broader organization.
To avoid harm to the broader organization, factional operations are usually conducted under strong secrecy and with minimal public scrutiny. This, however, can lead to the proliferation of unethical behaviour. Warfare between the factions may lead to tactics such as ballot box-stuffing, stack-outs, membership fraud, and other generally fraudulent conduct. Individuals who abandon (or “rat on”) a faction may be subject to intense personal vendettas where their former comrades go about sabotaging their careers.
A climate of intense factional conflict can also motivate individuals to focus on attacking their factional enemies rather than furthering the broader organization.
However, the benefits of factional systems are often overlooked. It is often incomprehensible to outsiders why members of a broader organization would engage in factionalism. This stems from the assumption that the natural factional relationship is one of conflict and strife, when in fact, factions are often able to engage in productive co-operation.
In any political organisation there are likely to be many highly opinionated and passionate people. The existence of a factional system allows its operations to be more predictable and stable. Compromise and give-and-take between factions allows the organisation to operate without having to satisfy the whims of many different, uncompromising individuals who might otherwise cause a split. So, somewhat counter-intuitively, factionalism can actually promote organisational harmony.
Factions also help to broaden and diversify the organisation’s appeal. A person who might otherwise find the organisation’s goals unattractive might be persuaded to support a faction within it whose goals are closer to their own. Just as a democratic government is often invigorated by a strong opposition, so having a number of distinct points-of-view with an organisation can energise it and allow it to perform its role more effectively. It is also highly unlikely that any sizeable political organisation is wholly united in purpose, so arguably factions simply represent a way of managing pre-existing differences within the organisation.
The Scottish Socialist Party allows factions to openly organise within its ranks calling them platforms in recognition of these benefits and also in the belief that it is healthier for substantive differences of opinion to be debated openly than to be covertly promoted, undermining the underlying aims of the party.
In the history of the Republic of China from 1911 until 1949, factionalisation within the Chinese Nationalist Kuomintang was a large problem for the central government, especially for Chiang Kai-Shek. Warlord factions which had been persuaded to ally with Chiang during the Northern Expedition had to be constantly pacified, as well as regional military governors who ruled regions that were not directly administrated by Chiang's central government. Often historians conclude that this lack of unity contributed to the defeat of the Nationalists in holding mainland China during the Chinese Civil War.
- Labor Right
- Socialist Left
- Liberal Party Wets (Moderates)
- Liberal Party Drys (Uglies)
- In the former CVP (Flemish Christian democrats; now CD&V), socio-economic interests were known as standen ('social standings', historically also used for feudal estates: nobility, clergy and third), such as the agricultural Boerenbond; similarly in the French-speaking sister party PSC (now CDH, after a merger)
- Within the United States Republican Party
- National Federation of Republican Assemblies
- Christian Right (made up of Christian Voice, Moral Majority, Christian Coalition, and Focus on the Family. The Christian Right claims to champion Biblical values)