This engaging exploration of the French Socialist Party details the exceptional problems that the party has faced and the way it has dealt with them. The result is a comprehensive and compelling guide to the quiddities of political infighting, the structure of power and of the environment in which the party operates.

1. Introduction: Exceptional Socialists 2. The Competitive Context 3. Party Organisation 4. Party Factional identity and Personalities 5. Presidentialism and Primaries 6. Ideology and Policy 7. Challenge from the Minoritarian Left 8. Socialist Politics Post Mitterrand 1988-2002 9. Socialist Party Development after 2002 10. Conclusion

David S. Bell is Emeritus Professor of French Government and Politics at the School of Politics and International Studies, University of Leeds, UK. As well as French politics, his primary areas of research include European party politics and political leadership all areas in which he has published extensively.
 
Byron Criddle is Emeritus Reader in Politics at the University of Aberdeen, UK. He is the author of numerous works on French electoral politics and British parliamentarians.