According to conventional wisdom in comparative politics, proportional representation systems are more fair than majoritarian systems due to the more direct relationship between votes and seats in the legislature. But clearly not all groups of voters get the outcomes they seek. Prior work has not determined how proportion representation affects which groups of voters get the outcomes they want. If small parties are able to influence the policy agenda to an extent disproportionate to their parliamentary representation, the assumption of fairness of proportional representation must be questioned. This research examines how small political parties effectively influence policy decision making and policy outcomes in parliamentary systems of government. This work highlights the importance of electoral institutions for policy outcomes. Israeli religious parties are examined as a case study of the importance of small parties in proportional representation systems. Archival materials (party manifestos, media coverage, legislative records) will be used to map a chronology of party strategies and activities. Qualitative assessments of these strategies and tactics will be conducted through interviews and surveys of party elites. * * *
