Political Parties Flashcards
Three main features of a political party:
Exercise government power by winning political office
Adopt a broad issue focus, addressing each of the major areas of government policy
Members of political parties usually United by shared political preferences and a general ideological identity
Define faction:
Group of like-minded politicians, usually formed around a key leader or in support of a set of preferred policies
Two party system:
System that is dominated by two ‘major’ parties that have roughly equal prospect of winning government power
Multi-party system:
Party system in which more than two parties compete for power
Functions of political parties:
Remember PROPER
Policy formation Representation Organisation of government Participation Election organising Recruitment of leaders
Define catch all:
Party that develops policies that will appeal to the widest range of voters
Define left wing:
Political ideas that are based on generally optimistic views about human nature and favour social change; left wingers tend to support Liberty, equality and state intervention.
Define right wing:
Political ideas that tend to be pessimistic about human nature and oppose change; right wingers typically favour order, authority and oppose state intervention.
Define conservatism:
Ideology that is defined by a ‘desire to conserve’. Traditionally been suspicious of abstract principles but prefers tradition and history.
Political party
A group of people that are organised for the purpose of winning government power
One nation conservatism:
A pragmatic + paternalistic form of conservatism that was prominent during the 1950s + 1960s
Define Thatcherism:
Ideological agenda that was associated with the ideas and values of Thatcher
Define Socialism:
Ideology that covers beliefs ranging from revolutionary communism to reformist social democracy. The central idea of socialism is that people are social creatures who are bound together by a common humanity
Define liberalism:
Ideology that is defined by commitment to the individual, reflected in the doctrine of ‘natural’ or human rights.
What are the core values of liberalism:
Individualism
Freedom
Toleration
