Chapter 1 Civics And Citizenships Flashcards
(21 cards)
sovereignty
the supreme and absolute power of a state (a place where people live which has borders and its own government).
Federation
the formation of a united country from separate states or colonies joining together under one central government, as happened in Australia in 1901
Constitutional monarchy
a type of government based on a constitution with a queen or king as its head of state
Constitution
a set of fundamental principles according to which a nation or state is governed
Westminster system
the democratic parliamentary system based on the British system of parliament
Bicameral
a parliament consisting of two legislative houses, or chambers
Unicameral
a parliament consisting of one legislative house, or chamber
Crown
the Queen’s authority in Australian parliament, represented by the Governor-General at the federal level and a governor at the state level
Separation of powers
the division of government into the legislature (parliament), executive (ministers and the public service) and judiciary with the aim of providing a system of checks and balances that prevents the excessive concentration of power in one group
Executive arm
another name for the government
Judiciary
the collective name given to the judges who preside over law courts
Preferential system
a system in which voters are required to number all candidates on the ballot paper in order of preference.
Absolute majority
half the number of votes received in an election plus one
Formal votes
a ballot paper that has been filled out correctly
First-past-the-post
a voting system where a candidate wins by receiving more votes than any other candidate
Proportional representation
a system where candidates are elected according to the proportion (or quota) of the vote achieved by their party
Absolute monarchy
a form of government where the monarch (a king, queen or emperor) wields unrestricted political power over his or her sovereign state and its people
Sovereignty of the people
the principle that a government’s authority resides with its people through their elected representatives
Republic
a form of government where supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives rather than by a monarch
Authoritarian
a form of government characterised by absolute or blind obedience to the state, an authority figure or a group
democracy
a system of government in which the people elect representatives
