This book brings the case of Russia to bear on theories of democracy. Whereas virtually every classic work takes political parties to be inevitable and essential to democracy, Russia has been dominated by nonpartisan politicians ever since communism collapsed. This book mobilizes public opinion surveys, interviews with Russian politicians, careful tracking of campaigns, and analysis of voting patterns to show why Russia stands out as a preserve of nonpartisanship. Key factors include federalism, an extremely strong presidency, and the way Russia distributed property and power as the communist system collapsed.

Henry E. Hale (PhD Harvard University, Massachusetts, 1998, AB Duke University, North Carolina, 1988) is an Assistant Professor of political science at George Washington University, Washington DC, where he researches and writes on political parties, elections, federalism, and ethnic politics with a focus on the cases of the former Soviet region, especially Russia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Many of the leading journals in comparative politics and post-communist studies have published his work, including the British Journal of Political Science, Comparative Politics, Comparative Political Studies, Europe-Asia Studies, Perspectives on Politics, Post-Soviet Affairs and World Politics. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and the National Council for Eurasian and East European Research. Before moving to George Washington University, he taught at Indiana University.

1. Electoral markets and Russia's political smorgasboard; 2. Party entrepreneurship in Russia's electoral market, 1989-2004; 3. How much party is in the party system?; 4. Electoral markets and party substitutes in Russia: origins and impact; 5. Parties and party substitutes: determining the balance; 6. Conclusion: the market model and theories of parties, national integration, and transitions from authoritarian rule.