Two Key Issues in the legal Regulation of political Parties: Financing and internal Democracy

Abstract

Political parties are an essential element for the correct functioning of a democratic state. Through them, citizens may express their interests and beliefs, but also participate in political decision-making. For these reasons, in order to ensure that the parties comply with theis duties, it is necessary the existence of its regulation, specifically of two of its most problematic areas: its financing and its internal democracy. This paper focuses on these two aspects starting from the idea that the democratic process is a competitive process and that in any democratic process, all citizens should have equal opportunities to express their beliefs and interests in the political field. To achieve this goal it is necessary, on the one hand regulate the financial system of political parties, which ultimately will determine the resources of the parties and their chance of success; and on the other hand, it is necessary regulate the process of decision-making within the same party, as this will be a mechanism that may reach to concrete the subjects who will occupy positions of political decision-making positions.