Professor Margit Tavits has recently published two articles on party organizations in new democracies. "Power within Parties: The Strength of the Local Party and MP Independence in Postcommunist Europe" appeared in the October 2011 issue of the American Journal of Political Science and shows that organizationally stronger local party branches are more powerful within the party.  "Organizing for Success: Party Organizational Strength and Electoral Performance in Postcommunist Europe" appeared in the January 2012 issue of the Journal of Politics and argues, contrary to much of the existing literature, that building strong party organizations pays off in votes. A third article in this series of studies on party organizations, titled "Party Organizational Strength and Party Unity in Post-Communist Europe," is forthcoming in the European Political Science Review.