This volume addresses the question of the political role of municipal councils and discusses the following issues: How is interest articulation and representation formed in local politics? What role do parties play in interest articulation and representation, and how do council members perceive the municipal council - more as an administrative or as a parliamentary body? How are different forms of interest representation and mediation assessed? To what extent is there reliance on the model of representative democracy - or that of a more advanced participatory democracy? How is the ongoing modernization of municipal administration since the 1990s perceived by council members, and how do factors such as party affiliation influence their respective attitudes? What social structural characteristics do council members exhibit?.