Call for Papers for the panel: “Presidents and Veto Power in Comparative Perspective”

Conference venue: Prague
Period: 7-10 September 2016
Deadline for submitting abstracts: Friday, 5 February 2016

Presidents are now the most common type of head of state in democracies around the world. Alt-hough the role of the presidency varies greatly from country to country, even the least powerful presidents possess some power that allows them to influence the political process. The common and most frequently used power is the right to veto. The majority of presidents around the world can return bills to parliament for reconsideration, and the mere threat to use their power can bring work on bills to a halt.

Yet there is great variation in stipulations and customs governing both the formal and informal veto power of presidents. Some presidents merely dispose of a block veto that can be overridden by a simple majority, while others can suggest changes to bills and impose their will on the legislature by the ways of super majorities required for overriding their veto. Even without being formally vested with such constitutional prerogatives, presidents have found ways to significantly delay or prevent the implementation of parliamentary or governmental decisions.

Apart from a wealth of studies on U.S.-American presidents, presidential veto use tends to be under-studied both empirically (e.g. veto use and its determinants) and theoretically (developing new or advancing existing approaches). The aim of this panel is to shed light on and examine different facets of presidential veto power within and beyond constitutional stipulations. It particularly welcomes proposals for comparative papers, irrespective of the chosen methodological approach (quantitative or qualitative). Potential topics include but are not limited to:

Please email your abstracts (300 words) for inclusion in the panel to Philipp Köker (p.koeker@ucl.ac.uk) by Friday, 5th February 2016.

Philipp Köker BA (Mannheim) MA PhD (UCL)
Research Associate in Societal and Political Responses to Corruption in Europe
University College London
School of Slavonic and East European Studies

address: Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, U.K.
Tel.: +44 (0) 20 7679 8819
E-mail: p.koeker@ucl.ac.uk
Webste: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ssees/anticorrp