Court politics in a federal polity

Abstract

This article uses a case study from Queensland to demonstrate the court politics approach's potential to reinvigorate executive studies. Court politics focuses on webs of interdependence within the core executive. It examines the beliefs and practices of elite actors and their fluid and contingent relationships. This article examines the patterns of executive politics that prevailed under Premier Anna Bligh. It seeks to answer three key questions. First, why is court politics a useful approach to studying the Australian core executive? Second, what is the nature and extent of court politics in Australian state governments? Finally, recognising that local traditions shape the beliefs and practices of political elites, how does the court politics approach need to be modified for application in Australia?

本文用昆士兰的一项个案研究说明庙堂政治的研究角度有重振执政者研究的潜力。庙堂政治学聚焦核心执政者相互依赖网络。它研究精英主体的信仰与实践以及他们流动易变的关系。本文分析了安娜布莱总理时期执政者政治的诸种模式。作者试图回答三个问题。第一，为什么庙堂政治学是研究澳大利亚核心执政者的有益方式？第二，澳大利亚州政府的庙堂政治是什么性质、什么程度？第三，政治精英的信仰和实践乃由地方传统塑造，那么，将庙堂政治学研究方法应用于澳大利亚，需要做哪些变通？