A data-driven explanation of when successful religious parties reduce the civil liberties of their citizens in Muslim-majority countries and when they don't. Religious parties are increasingly common across the world. More and more, they participate in elections, win legislative seats, and join governments, particularly in Muslim-majority countries. Since they are often founded on orthodox principles that are inconsistent with liberal democracy, their rise potentially holds consequences for the prospects of liberal democratic values and practices-and this risk has inspired much heated debate. In Religious Parties and the Politics of Civil Liberties, the award-winning political science scholar Vineeta Yadav considers a question that has been central to the discussion: Will the success of religious parties lead to declines in the civil liberties of their citizens? Yadav summarizes the popular and academic sides of the conversation and addresses the weaknesses of both by presenting an original empirical analysis of religious parties' actual relationship to civil liberties. Many believe that if religious parties come to power, they will curb civil liberties in order to realize their religious visions. Academic research on religious parties, however, claims that the need to compete in elections incentivizes religious parties to moderate their behaviors and policies, including on civil liberties. Neither of these assertions has been systematically tested until now. With this book, Yadav adjudicates the debate using systematic data that covers all Muslim-majority countries for a period of almost forty years. She highlights the role that religious lobbies play in this issue and goes on to identify the specific conditions under which religious parties do or don't curb civil liberties. A sweeping comparative account that combines large-N analysis with focused studies of Turkey and Pakistan, this book will reshape our understanding of the relationship between religious party strength and the preservation of civil liberties.

About the Author
Vineeta Yadav is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Penn State University. She specializes in South Asian politics and has authored several books looking at the actions, political influence, and impact of lobbies in developing countries. Her book on business lobbies and their impact corruption, Political Parties, Business Groups, and Corruption in Developing Countries (Oxford) won two book awards and an honourable mention for a third award from the American Political Science Association.

Reviews
Are religiously-based political parties undermining the conditions for the advancement of civil liberties and democracy in the Muslim world? The answer, Yadav says, is not a simple yes or no. In a nuanced theoretical examination of religious parties in Turkey, Pakistan, and other nations, Yadav reveals interesting strategic interactions between religious interest groups, Muslim politicians, and secular parties that differentially affect civil liberties. Her meticulous statistical evidence and case studies provide the best explanation to date of how religion shapes politics in the Muslim world. An essential addition to the literature and a delight to read! * Anthony Gill, Professor of Political Science, University of Washington, and Distinguished Fellow, Baylor University Institute for Studies of Religion *
The question of whether religious parties and organizations are conducive to or inimical of civil liberties has been hotly debated in comparative politics for more than thirty years. In this thoroughly original and empirically rich study, Yadav explores these questions in the context of Muslim-majority societies. The result is a book both fascinating in its narrative and deeply important both for policy analysts and scholars of comparative Muslim politics generally. This book allows us to rethink certain basic premises with regard to Muslim politics, and is one of the most original and important works in comparative Muslim politics in the past ten years. * Robert Hefner, Professor of Anthropology and Global Affairs, Boston University *
Religious Parties and the Politics of Civil Liberties is a much needed systematic, nuanced, and skillful examination of the relationship between Islamic religious parties and curtailment or expansion of civil liberties.Vineeta Yadav shows how concrete organizational and political needs and resources are deployed by religious leaders and politicians to expand the impact of religion on civil liberties. It is important reading for students and scholars of religion and politics, as well as policymakers, and anyone interested in understanding how and why religious parties and organizations affect civil rights and freedoms. * Carolyn Warner, Vail Pittman Professor of Political Science, University of Nevada, Reno *


Awards
Winner of Winner, 2022 Stein Rokkan Prize for Comparative Social Science Research Honorable Mention, 2022 Distinguished Book Award, Society for the Scientific Study of Religion.



Book Information
ISBN 9780197545362
Author Vineeta Yadav
Format Hardback
Page Count 384
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 658g
Dimensions(mm) 160mm * 236mm * 31mm