Mayboroda M. Transformation of the Ukrainian party system in Donetsk region

The thesis is devoted to the functioning of the Ukrainian party system at the level of a particular region. The thesis presents the scientific achievements of Ukrainian and foreign researchers on the problem of modern political parties. It was determined that there is a number of researches concerned with the problem of functioning of political parties at the national level. The regional aspects of their activity are to be under consideration as well. The stages of formation and development of regional centres of Ukraine's Donetsk leading political parties as well as their regional political programs and the performance in the local government are analysed. Despite the many political parties represented in the region, Party of Regions supervises the activities of the regional and municipal councils to form government policy at the local level. The evolution of political preferences of Donetsk region in the course of 1998 - 2012 in the context of elections is investigated as well as the background and reasons which change the electoral support of political forces in Ukraine. The recommendations to the public and parties are presented in order to increase the efficiency of the political system. As a result the regional segment of the political programs of the parties in accordance with the local circumstances and expectations is to be enhanced. Their contents is to be refined and specified to abandon the declarative statements and to pay more attention to the information aspect at the regional level, to form the lists of candidates more attentively both at the national and local levels.