When Revolutionary Coalitions Break Down
Polarization, Protest, and the Tunisian Political Crisis of August 2013
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6160845 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Ceil Berman (0000-0003-4861-6923, Princeton University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2019 |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 136-179 |
| Publication date | 2019-11-24 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Middle East Law and Governance (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1876-3367 • E-ISSN: 1876-3375 |
| Publisher | Brill (PUBLISHER • NL) |
| DOI | 10.1163/18763375-01102003 |
| OpenAlex | W2991402175 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 11 |
| References cited | 44 |
Revolutionary coalitions often break down in the aftermath of revolution, leading to the collapse of transitional governments. Fragmentation among revolutionary elites has been extensively theorized, but few works consider the origins and consequences of polarization among non-elite protesters in the revolutionary coalition. This paper examines the case of Tunisia to unpack how polarization among former revolutionaries may drive secondary waves of mobilization that imperil governing coalitions, even when elites are cooperating. Unique protest surveys of pro- and anti-government demonstrations during the Tunisian political crisis of 2013 – which catalyzed the resignation of the country’s first elected assembly – show that polarization within this coalition occurred along ideological lines concerning the role of Islam in governance but not along class lines, as some theories of transition would predict. Revolutionaries are re-mobilized in part through divergent narratives concerning which social groups participated most in the revolutionary struggle, and which groups suffered and profited most under the old regime. This paper counters the elite-centrism of predominant “transitology” approaches by highlighting how protest politics may shape institutional transitions
Corporate governance · Economics · Elite · Ideology · Islam · Narrative · Polarization (electrochemistry · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · History · Law · Political Conflict and Governance · Politics and Society in Latin America · Religion and Society Interactions
Cognitive–motivational mechanisms of political polarization in social-communicative contexts
The Social Contract and Collective Action
Critical Transitions in Ecosystems and Society. The Contribution of Sociological Systems Theory to the Analysis of Socio-Environmental Transformations
Episodes of contention, bonds of trust
Bridging the gap
Revolutionary burnout
Is Tunisia’s democracy on its deathbed? Social capital, economic insecurity and attitudes toward democracy
When citizens look backwards
When reorganizing coercion backfires
Protesting for autocracy
The Tunisian transition
Comparative Historical Analysis and Knowledge Accumulation in the Study of Revolutions
The Logic of Connective Action
Political Order in Changing Societies
The anatomy of revolution.
Comparative Historical Analysis in the Social Sciences
Social Media and the Decision to Participate in Political Protest
Why civil resistance works
On the Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy
Silence and Voice in the Study of Contentious Politics
Power in Movement
Islamists, Secularists and Old Regime Elites in Tunisia
Democracy, Civil Liberties and the Role of Religion after the Arab Awakening
Will the Real Tunisian Opposition Please Stand Up? Opposition Coordination Failures under Authoritarian Constraints
Rethinking Revolutions
Domination & control in Tunisia
Paths toward Democracy
Theorizing Revolutions
Understanding the Success of Mass Civic Protest in Tunisia
Resistance and Rebellion
Stalled Democracy
Regime Cycles
Contentious Politics and Democratization
Why Are American Presidential Election Campaign Polls So Variable When Votes Are So Predictable
Organized Interests in Constitutional Assemblies
Moderation through exclusion? The journey of the TunisianEnnahdafrom fundamentalist to conservative party
Nonviolent revolutions
Explaining Divergent Revolutionary Coalitions
Repression and Activism among the Arab Spring’s First Movers
Cross‐class Coalitions and the Making of the Arab Revolts of 2011
The Call for Dignity, or a Particular Universalism
The Making of a Revolution in Tunisia
Political Opportunity Structures and Political Protest
The Mediterranean in Politics
Unemployed mobilisation in times of democratisation
Revolution, Rebellion, Resistance
States and Social Revolutions. A Comparative Analysis of France, Russia, and China
The Semblance of Democratic Revolution
Framing Processes and Social Movements
Revolutionary outcomes in Iran and Nicaragua
Historical events as transformations of structures
| Unique citing works | 11 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2,2 |
| Citation span | 2021 - 2026 (6) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 11 |