Political space seems to be shrinking, yet the term 'globalization' is seldom mentioned in connection with political parties. This book asks whether the time is now ripe for global political parties.

Though global civil society is a buzzword, activists seem to reject the idea of global political parties as irrelevant. Yet political parties remain the formal basis for government both nationally and in the current international system. Looking to the future, will existing political parties democratize international governance, or will new political parties emerge to fill this vacuum? Is this a role that the World Social Forum can play?

Featuring contributions from major figures from Samir Amin to Jan Aart Scholte, Global Political Parties is an exciting analysis of what the globalization of party politics would mean for the nation state, global governance and democracy worldwide.

Katarina Sehm Patomäki is the executive secretary of the Network Institute for Global Democratization (NIGD) and is also based at the University of Helsinki. Her research focuses mainly on debt in the developing world.

Marko Ulvila is a freelance researcher and democracy activist based in Tampere, Finland. He is currently member-secretary of the Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam and chairperson of the Network Institute for Global Democratization (NIGD). He has previously worked for civil society organisations in Finland, Tanzania and India.