Party-hopping laws in the southern hemisphere

Laws against party-hopping are relatively common in the southern hemisphere. This is true even among Commonwealth countries, despite some disapproval of such laws expressed in the Commonwealth's Latimer House Principles on the Three Branches of Government. This paper reviews anti-defection laws in the southern hemisphere as well as the use of other methods of discouraging no-confidence votes. It focuses particularly on the experience in the Pacific Islands region, where reforms ostensibly aimed at strengthening political parties have often masked attempts by governments to insulate themselves from political challenge.