Reversal of local party system nationalisation: Exploring the influence of size, rurality, peripherality and mergers

Nationalization of local party systems takes place in several countries.
However, in the Netherlands, this process shows signs of reversal. Using
data from seven municipal elections between 1998 and 2022, we observe
that the local party system nationalization index decreases considerably
over time, meaning more independent local parties in the local council. In
addition to size, we find that rurality and center-periphery differences are
important determinants of reverse nationalization. More specifically, we
observe that a greater distance to the political center in the Netherlands
is associated with less nationalization. In addition, more localization is found
in municipalities that were recently part of a merger, except where a small
municipality is merged with a much larger one.