Bureaucracy is often seen as background machinery or as an obstacle to effective government. Bureaucracy and Political Science offers a different view. It shows that public bureaucracies are political organizations: shaped by political institutions and actors, but also deeply involved in shaping policy, implementation, reform, and democratic governance. The book explains why bureaucracies cannot be understood through familiar stereotypes of red tape, drift, or inefficiency alone. It shows why managing and reforming public organizations is more political, more contested, and more difficult than standard reform narratives suggest. The result is a clear and accessible account of what bureaucracy is, how it works, and why it remains a central pillar of modern democracy.

Tobias Bach is Professor of Political Science at the University of Oslo, Norway.

Kai Wegrich is Professor of Public Administration and Public Policy at the Hertie School, Germany.