There is a major contradiction in contemporary politics: there has been a wave of democratization that has swept across much of the world, while at the same time globalization appears to have reduced the social forces that have built democracy historically. This book, by an international group of authors, analyzes the ways in which local politics in developing countries - often neglected in work on democratization - render democratic experiments more or less successful in realizing substantial democracy.

With a new Preface and Foreword, this IPE Classic analyzes the ways in which politics in developing countries render democratic experiments more or less successful in realizing substantial democracy

Introduction: The New Local Politics of Democratisation; J.Harriss, K.Stokke & O.Törnquist Decentralisation in Indonesia: Less State, More Democracy?; H.S.Nordholt Bossism and Democracy in the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia: Towards an Alternative Framework for the Study of 'Local Strongmen'; J.T.Sidel Can Public Deliberation Democratise State Action? Municipal Health Councils and Local Democracy in Brazil; G.Schönleitner Historical Hurdles in the Course of the People's Planning Campaign in Kerala, India; P.K.M.Tharakan Social Movements, Socio-Economic Rights and Substantial Democratisation in South Africa; K.Stokke & S.Oldfield More Than Difficult, Short of Impossible: Party Building and Local Governance in the Philippines; J.Rocamora Trade Unions, Institutional Reform and Democracy: Nigerian Experiences with South African and Ugandan Comparisons; B.Beckman The Political Deficit of Substantial Democratisation; O.Törnquist