Lecture 6 - Democracy Flashcards
(20 cards)
Define democracy
political power exercised either directly or indirectly by the people
Define Direct Democracy
Public participates directly in government and policy making historically found in small communities such as ancient Athens
Indirect Democracy
Public participates indirectly through its elected representatives; the prevalent form of democracy in the modern age.
why is Liberal democracy ‘better’ than Illiberal regimes
LD - promote participation , competition and liberty and emphasise individual freedom and civil rights
ID - Hold elections, but lack key democratic elements sometimes called hybrid, electoral authoritarianism, and semi-democratic regimes
What are the two legislature systems
Bicameral and Unicameral
Define Bicameral legislature
composed of two houses: UK: house of commons, house of lords
Define Unicameral legislature
- composed of one house
- smaller homogenous countries
- Denmark
How can legislators be selected?
direct election -> French assembly
indirect election - French senate
heredity/ appointment - UK house of Lords
what is a constitutional court?
the highest judicial body in a political system that decides whether laws and policies violate the constitution
What are the Three branches of Government
executive -> head of state/ government, can be fixed term length or not
legislative -> lawmaking Unicameral or bicameral
Constitutional court -> Determines the constitutionality of laws and acts Judicial review
Explain presidential systems
presidents as directly elected head of state (and sometimes also of government) with a (mostly) two-term limit
Explain Semi-presidential system
President is the head of state, is directly elected and has substantial power over policy areas as defence and foreign policy.
The president appoints the prime minister as head of government (most responsible for socio-economic affairs)
Benefits and Drawbacks of parliamentary systems (PM)
B - PM can get legislature passed, PM can be easily removed through a vote of no confidence
D - public does not directly vote for PM, may feel less involved in legislature
Benefits and Drawbacks of Presidential systems
B - directly elected and can enact legislature
D - legislature and President may be from different parties leading to divide. President cannot be easily removed
Benefits and Drawbacks of Semi-presidential
B - directly elected president and indirectly elected PM share power
D - conflicts possible between prime minister and president over powers and responsibilities
What are the two main voting systems
single-member districts (SMD)
Proportional representation (PR)
explain single-member districts (SMD) system
an electoral system with one seat (elected from each electoral district)
fewer in number: mostly the UK& former British colonies
explain Proportional representation (PR) system
an electoral system in which political parties compete in multimember districts; voters choose between parties, and the seats in the district are awarded proportionally according to the result of the vote
explain first past the post system (FPTP)
an electoral system in which individual candidates compete in single-member districts
“most votes win”
UK and US
Advantages and Disadvantages of Proportional representation (PR) system
B - more and smaller parties = more representation of ideas, strong party discipline and ideological branding, more minorities.
D - risk of fragmentation
