List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Conceptual and Comparative Considerations
2. Kalanterism, the "Stinking Trick," and the Evolution of Israel's Anti-Defection Law
3. The Growing Incidence of Party Switching in Israel
4. "Acquire a Friend for Yourself!" The Rise of Collective Defections in the Knesset
5. The Preponderance of Pre-Electoral Party Switching
6. Between Government and Opposition: The Directionality of Exit
7. Does Defection Pay? The Electoral Consequences of Party Switching
8. Comparative Cases: Anti-Defections Laws and Their Consequences in India, New Zealand, and South Africa
Conclusion
Appendix
Notes
Works Cited
Index

Csaba Nikolenyi is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Azrieli Institute of Israel Studies at Concordia University in Canada. He is the author of Institutional Design and Party Government in Post-Communist Europe and Minority Governments in India: The Puzzle of Elusive Majorities.