Power Transitions and Leadership Successions in Government; P.'t Hart & J.Uhr PART I: UNDERSTANDING TRANSITIONS Ruling Elite Transitions in Australia and the United States; J.Higley & J.Pakulski Managers or Messiahs? Prime Ministerial Leadership and the Transition to Government; J.Walter Establishing Prime Ministerial Leadership Style in Opposition; W.Errington Bicameralism and the Dynamics of Contested Transitions; J.Uhr , S.Bach & L.Massicotte Westminster Norms and Caretaker Conventions: Australian and New Zealand Transition Debates; M.Simms PART II: UNDERSTANDING SUCCESSIONS Seeking and Keeping the Hot Seat: a Comparative Analysis of Party Leader Successions; M.Laing & P.'t Hart Holding Party Leaders to Account: the Westminster Cases; W.Cross & A.Blais The Firing Line: When and Why do Prime Ministers Fire Ministerial Colleagues?; K.Dowding & E.McLeay Power Consolidation in Leadership Change Contexts: a Social Identity Perspective; E.Subaši? & K.J.Reynolds Building Trust at the Beginning of a New Leadership Role: the Role of Learning and Collaboration; P.Atkins 'The Tideless Pond that Seemed Waiting for Me': the Afterlife of Australian Prime Ministers; P.Strangio How Power Changes Hands: Concluding Reflections; P.'t Hart & J.Uhr