臺灣地方自治選舉是形塑地方派系的重要因素之一,傳統派系依附地方性選舉以組織動員、瓜分公職席位、攫取資源利益、維持本身存續能量,並左右著我國地方政治發展。 2008年臺灣第七屆立法委員選舉,由過往長期採用的複數選區(multi-member-district system)單記非讓渡投票制(single non-transferable vote;常簡稱SNTV)改為「單一選區兩票制」,連帶著立委席次減半、選區重劃之變動,其後縣市合併升格、公職人員選舉整併等制度性變化更接踵而來,傳統全縣型地方派系所依侍且習慣的選舉架構更迭,導致其著力點漸失,以往派系主導之地方政治生態也因而正在轉型。 本研究關注縣市層級選舉之於地方派系的政治效應,理論面上著重選舉制度的政治影響、實務面上關心選舉結果之於地方政治的衍生作用,期望完成選制研究與地方政治研究的一次對話。研究時間區段,則始自2008年立委選制改變,至2014年底地方公職人員選舉(俗稱九合一大選)結果迄今為觀察標的,並以傳統地方派系角逐政治的典型區域──涵括原臺中縣區與原臺中市區的大臺中直轄市,以及政黨與派系結盟之特殊案例──嘉義縣,就兩縣市作為研究觀察樣本,從而歸納出歷經此期間內諸次選舉後,派系政治漸轉為政黨政治、山頭或頭人政治,地方上展現多項不同以往的新政治風貌,描繪著未來成形中之臺灣地方政治新生態藍圖。 同時,本研究也從當前地方政治現象,回顧檢視傳統地方政治研究仰賴的「恩庇-侍從理論」(patron-client theory)研究途徑、「人際關係網絡理論」(network theory)研究途徑,加上新興的「政治密友主義」(political cronyism),進而發現「恩庇-侍從理論」與「人際關係網絡理論」兩者對於詮釋臺灣政治新生態已有所侷促,「政治密友主義」則補足前兩者之不足,可茲為一適合當前依循的地方政治新分析架構。
Conducting local elections is one of the important factors that form local factions in Taiwan. Traditional factions organize and mobilize themselves, share public office seats, grab resource and interest, and maintain energy to survive by local elections. Moreover, they affect how local politics evolving in our country. Single Non-Transferable Vote (SNTV) with multi-member-district system was used in legislative elections for a long time in Taiwan. Since 2008, in which the 7th legislative elections were held, the electoral system has been changed to Mixed-Member Majoritarian System (MMM). Reduction of legislative seats by half and electoral redistricting accompanied the change. In addition, city-county consolidation and merger of local public office elections was incoming. The shifts of electoral frames to which traditional local factions were accustomed lead to no exerting point. Therefore, formerly faction-guided local political ecology is transforming. This thesis pays attention to political effects on local factions at the county-level elections, concerning electoral system influences by theoretical side, taking regard to derivative consequences of election results by empirical side, and expecting to achieve a conversation between electoral system study and local politics research. The research time period begins in 2008 when legislative electoral system changed, through the local public officers elections in 2014 till now. The observed regions are Taichung City, a typical faction politics area, and Chiayi county, a special case that local faction formed an alliance with political party. This article indicates that local faction politics turns to party politics, mountaintop politics or headman politics gradually. Several new local political features which are different from the past come out, depicting a blueprint of the formation of new local political ecology in Taiwan. Meanwhile, by current local political situations, this thesis surveys the traditional local politics study approaches, that is, patron-client theory and network theory, and it also surveys political cronyism as a new approach. This research discovers that it is difficult to elucidate the whole new local political ecology in Taiwan by patron-client theory and network theory today. Political cronyism completes those defects, and suits to be a new local political analytical framework at present.