Do Islamists Lose Elections On Purpose?

As insightful as a counter-intuitive argument can get:

Islamist parties “go out of their way to avoid increasing their share of parliamentary seats, even when doing so would appear both possible and in their self-interest” […] The assumption that they are out to grab political power […] is based on a misunderstanding of their main goal, which is to Islamise society […] Merely by contesting elections, they can shape the public discourse and often push governments into adopting more “Islamic” policies than would otherwise have been the case.

A fascinating perspective which makes total sense. Islamists like to talk in absolutes, and the nitty-gritty of ruling a country will put them in territory they’re unfomfortable with: Pragmatism, compromise and day-to-day ugliness.

I couldn’t help but think of Hezbollah while reading it, though I know that the party has special circumstances in the Lebanese context.