How democratic are the political parties in Norway? We use survey data from Norwegian party members (1991 and 2000) and Congress delegates (2000-1) to discuss two main questions: how do party members and Congress delegates evaluate the state of intra-party democracy? And what kind of intra-party democracy do they prefer? The analyses do not support the thesis of an increasing centralization of party decision making. Members were reasonably satisfied with the leadership, but those in positions of power were more satisfied than the grassroots. Participants at all levels preferred the present delegatory type of democracy to more direct democratic procedures. The attitudes of the participants do not indicate any strong pressure for organizational change, but declining membership and lack of legitimacy may still bring changes to intra-party decision-making.
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