Democracy and participation Flashcards
(37 cards)
why is participation important in politics?
-people are consenting to be ruled and secondly they confer legitimacy on those who do rule.
-are able to hold their representatives to account
examples of formal participation?
-the election of representatives, voting in referendums, membership of political parties
examples of informal participation?
-online activism, signing a petition discussing politics etc.
evidence for and against party membership participation crisis?
-FOR:
-membership of political parties has decreased with the Cons having 150,000 members in 2016 and 400,000 in the 1990s
-AGAINST:
-membership has increased for Labour with 190,000 in 2015 and 515,000 by 2015
-OVERALL:
most political parties have seen an increase but compared to the high population still low participation.
evidence for and against voter turnout participation crisis?
-FOR:
-voting decreased in 2001 from 83% in 1950 to 59%
-AGAINST:
-335,443 signatures as more people get involved online.
evidence for an against engagement and interest in politics participation crisis?
-FOR:
-interest for politics is at an all time low at 42%
-1/3 of sample said they’d discussed politics last year.
who is to blame for the participation crisis?
-Media, 2011 phone hacking scandal revealed that employees of Rupert Murdoch had been involved in illegal information gathering which further reduced publics trust in the media.
-decline of social capital
-blame of politicians
arguments for making voting compulsory?
-Voting is a social duty as well as a right: people should be engaged in the process that affects their lives.
-It would produce a Parliament that is more representative of the whole.
-Politicians would have to run better campaigns and governments would have to frame their policies with the whole electorate in mind.
- Voters are not obliged to vote for one of the candidates if they conscientiously cannot do so;
it would still be legal to spoil one’s ballot paper or a ‘none of the above’ box could be put on the ballot paper
arguments against making voting compulsory?
-If a preferential system was used where voters vote by
numbering candidates then they just might number
1,2,3 from the top of the ballot paper.
-It is undemocratic to force people to take part in
something that should be a matter of choice.
-It would not change the nature of campaigns as much
as people think and politicians would still focus their
campaigns on marginal seats.
-It does not address the deeper reasons why people
decide not to vote.
examples of e-petitions?
-e-petition gained 156,216 signatures to look into the causes of death of those who died at Hillsborough as a result of this and a motion in the house of commons files were released and fresh inquests into the cause of death were held and David Duckenfield the police officer stood trial for manslaughter again.
-2014 38 degrees organised an email campaign concerning zero-hour contracts and it asked thousands of people to send the employment minister emails and helped bring the contracts to the top of the political agenda
arguments that e-petitions enhance democracy?
-Increase participation bringing people who do not engage in conventional politics into the process
-Make for a better and more informed electorate.
-Communicate directly between the government and the governed
-Enhance disperse of power and influence and give wider access to decision-makers.
arguments that e-petitions threaten democracy?
-Give greater access to ant-democratic and extremist voices who reach a wider audience than conventional
politics.
-Makes distinguishing between fact and fiction much harder.
-May increase tendency for government to be overly influenced by short-term vocal campaigns that do not reflect wider public opinion.
what are citizens assemblies?
-involve participants who are randomly selected to be representative of the population as a whole and they follow a three-step process.
-first they learn about the issue from different experts
-secondly they consider the evidence with others.
-third stage they decide proposals based on what they have learnt and discussed.
-usually commissioned by institutions grappling with an issue.
example of a citizen assembly?
-Economic and social research council funded Brexit in 2017 for two weeks .
-experts from the fields of trade and migration gave ten minute slots of evidence.
-of the 50 members 25 voted leave 22 remain and 3 didn’t outcome of the discussion was that most members wanted a soft Brexit or stay in the single market and customs unit than leave with no deal.
arguments that Citizens assemblies enhance democracy?
-allows people to get involved and raises legitimacy
-citizens possess particular perspective and knowledge that politicians and officials often lack.
-doesn’t take decision making out of the hands of the ministers.
-can overcome the sense of powerlessness
arguments that Citizens Assemblies don’t enhance democracy?
-they are advisory and can be ignored
-expensive to set up and organise
-not everyone has the time to participate
-should such small groups have any influence?
what is direct democracy?
-direct, unmediated and continuous participation of citizens in the tasks of government, which means that citizens express themselves and make the decisions.
-referendum is the most common modern form.
which is representative democracy?
-operates through the ability of representatives to speak for or act on behalf of the people.
advantages of direct democracy?
-A ‘Pure Form of Democracy’ everyone has a say on the issues of the day rather than expressed through representatives.
-Encourages popular participation in politics by expecting people to their duties as citizens seriously.
-Removes need for trusted representatives as people can take responsibility for their own decisions.
-Improves political education of the people
-It works – Countries like Switzerland regularly use direct democracy to make decisions and seems to function effectively.
disadvantages of direct democracy?
-Impractical in a large, heavily populated modern state
where decision-making is complicated
-Many people will not want to go – or – feel qualified
to take part in decision-making, so political activists
decide what happens.
-Open to manipulation by the cleverest and most
articulate speakers who will persuade people to
support their view point
-Emotional responses –people tend to make decisions
on short-term emotional impulses rather than longer
term political factors
advantages of representative democracy?
-It is the only form of democracy that can operate in large complex societies dealing with complicated issues.
-It is more efficient as ordinary citizens are relieved of the day-to-day burden of making key decisions
-Representatives offer choice of ways of running things through competing programmes via political parties.
-Minority rights are better protected as representatives have to represent the whole community.
-Government is by experts as politicians are well educated and are better informed about key political issues because it is their job to be.
disadvantages of representative democracy?
-May lead to reduced participation as people choose to hand responsibility to politicians.
-Parties and Pressure Groups may be run by elites who push their own agenda rather than that of wider society.
-Minorities may still find themselves
underrepresented as politicians are more likely to follow the views of the majority to secure election.
-Politicians may be corrupt or become distant from their voters and come to be seen as out of touch with ordinary people.
what are the 6 functions of democracy?
-representation
-accountability
-participation
-power dispersal
-legitimacy
-education
what does representative democracy allow us to do?
-hold politicians to account, and people had given their consent to be governed and therefore give the actions of government legitimacy.
