Party Systems Flashcards
(9 cards)
Who came up with the idea of party systems?
Giovanni Sartori
What are the two types of party that Sartori conjectured?
~ Effective parties who have a chance of achieving concrete power, like the republicans and democrats in the USA
~ Actual parties who exist and operate but stand very little chance of winning power
What is a two party system?
A party system in which two effective parties dominate the system with power swapping between the two.
Positive and negative of two party systems
+ Encourages consensus politics and moderation as both parties need to appeal to “floating voters”
- Creates polarising politics as government policies are reversed every time the other party takes power
What is a multi party system?
A system in which there are more than two effective parties competing for power. In this case, it is highly unlikely that any single party will win enough votes to govern alone leading to a great number of coalitions.
Example of a multi party system?
Sweden, where there are 8 effective parties
Are multi party systems better?
+ National parliaments are more representative as voters have a greater choice of effective parties
+ Extremism unlikely as general consensus prevails
- Coalitions common which blurs the lines of accountability
- Can lead to instability as coalition breakdowns can cause change to the government against the will of the people
Aside from two and multi party systems, what other systems do some argue exist?
~ A one party system, such as in China
~ A three party system in Canada
~ A two-and-a-half party system in Australia
Is the UK a two party system?
+ Since 1945, 18 of the 19 elections have been won by one of either Labour or the Conservatives
- Support for the two main parties has fallen by 25%
- Further down the system multi party systems are emerging such as in London or Scotland
