Idealism versus realism in institutional choice: Explaining electoral reform in Poland

One of the most significant, yet not fully, explained, institutional decisi ons in post-Communist Europe was Poland's adoption of a moderate proportion al representation system for the 1993 general election. This article argues that the new electoral system was not entirely based on any normative noti on of democratic governance, and that the adoption did not immediately foll ow from the assumptions of rational choice theory. The 1993 electoral syste m was largely attributable to patterns of interaction between political par ties that had become known, been practised and accepted since the fall of C ommunism. In reality, the eventual system was built up incrementally in sev eral stages, but the Polish way of 'muddling through', albeit contentious a nd protracted, seems to have worked well for the Polish people.