Political Leadership in the Plural: Problems of Conceptualization

The article describes the model of joint political leadership, understood as a process of interaction between several top officials between whom power is dispersed at the national or party level. It is noted that this is a relatively new object of political science research, which requires theoretical conceptualization to determine the possibilities and limitations of the implementation of this model as an alternative to individual leadership. The aim is to characterize the model of joint political leadership, to identify its strengths and weaknesses compared to individual political leadership, to determine the factors that influence its formation and sustainability. For its realization the reasons for the emergence of joint political leadership are determined, the criteria for its identification are highlighted, the institutional conditions at the national and party levels in which its realization is possible/difficult are defined, and the problem of its sustainability in the medium term is posed. Based on the generalization of modern theoretical approaches, the conclusion is made that joint political leadership, on the one hand, successfully solves the problems of personification and representativeness of power, and curbs populist incentives in the behavior of politicians. On the other hand, the functioning of this model requires not only a specific configuration of institutions in the state, but also a special personal motivation of politicians themselves, who understand the importance of distributed power for their career and are able to exercise leadership functions in tandem or team. It is emphasized that the basis of shared leadership on a national scale is the party system, which in case of its ineffectiveness in reflecting public demands, creates a social demand for individual leadership of populist nature.