Media and the Presidentialization of Parliamentary Elections

'In the 1960s there was much dispute about how far British politics was being presidentialized. The Thatcher and Blair premierships did much to tilt the argument to the presidential. Yet, as Anthony Mughan shows in this dispassionate and well-documented work, the question is not settled. Ministers matter. Party images matter. And the power and the appeal of any premier fluctuates from year to year. This is a timely and important book.' - David Butler, Professor Emeritus, Nuffield College, Oxford

This is a bold and imaginative project that addresses the issue of the 'presidentialization' of British general elections in an analytically stringent manner. Mughan demonstrates an astute awareness of the formative origins and contemporary significance of the theme. In seeking answers to the question of leadership effects upon electoral presentation and voter choice, Mughan demonstrates an inventiveness and rigour that first dismantles general claims into manageable components and then addresses the inherent problems of definition, methodology and empirical accessibility. The result is a fascinating and persuasive tour de force that compels us to review our standard party-centred understandings of Britain's electoral dynamics.' - Michael Foley, Professor, Aberystwyth

'Sweeping claims have been made about the 'presidentialization' of British elections. Now Anthony Mughan has subjected both the data and the idea itself to rigorous scrutiny. The result is an elegant, readable and succinct contribution to the literature on election campaigns - and to the broader argument about the presidentialization of British government.' - Colin Seymour-Ure, Professor of Government, University of Kent at Canterbury