Misconduct and Whistleblowing in Political Parties

Our aim is to identify and examine the mechanisms of whistleblowing in political parties.

Whistleblowing, understood as insiders’ disclosure of illegal, immoral, or illegitimate practices of an organization is generally recognized as a key process through which government institutions and corporations are held accountable. Still, we know little of this process in one of the most central institutions of democracy: the political parties.

Bringing together the literatures on party research and the research fields of whistleblowing and corruption, we pose two sets of research questions: 1) What types of misconduct occur in political parties and to what extent do these practices take place? 2) How, by whom, and with what results is whistleblowing used to reveal these misconducts?

The project provides an in-depth empirical knowledge into hitherto hidden processes of misconduct and inter-party accountability by analysing surveys sent to political representatives in Sweden and by carrying out a large number of qualitative interviews with Swedish politicians, party members, civil servants, and journalists.

Upon the conclusion of the project in 2025, our results will inform the discussion on the role of political parties in generating and sustaining good governance.

They may also spark a debate about transparency and whistleblowing protection in party organizations.Keywords: whistleblowing, political parties, misconduct, corruption, accountability, transparency, Sweden