This is the first book about the politics of party switching, or floor crossing, better known as "kalanterism" in Israeli politics. The Israeli parliament adopted legislation in 1991 that imposed penalties on parliamentary defectors. However, as the book documents, the effect of this legislation was extremely puzzling: the frequency of party switches has increased over time, and most switches have taken the form of party splits making Israeli legislative parties increasingly less cohesive and united. Building on evidence from parliamentary debates, committee records and contemporary journalistic accounts, author Csaba Nikolenyi shows that notwithstanding these unexpected consequences, the Israeli anti-defection legislation proved to be an important tool that governments could use to divide their opposition and shore up their often fragile parliamentary base of support.

List of IllustrationsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Conceptual and Comparative Considerations2. Kalanterism, the "Stinking Trick," and the Evolution of Israel's Anti-Defection Law3. The Growing Incidence of Party Switching in Israel4. "Acquire a Friend for Yourself!" The Rise of Collective Defections in the Knesset5. The Preponderance of Pre-Electoral Party Switching6. Between Government and Opposition: The Directionality of Exit7. Does Defection Pay? The Electoral Consequences of Party Switching8. Comparative Cases: Anti-Defections Laws and Their Consequences in India, New Zealand, and South AfricaConclusionAppendixNotesWorks CitedIndex