Comparative Politics - Week 3 (Constitutions)

Question 1

how does Stone Sweet describe a constitution

Answer 1

a body of meta-norms that specify how all other norms are to be produced, applied, enforced and interpreted

Question 2

what is an absolutist constitution

Answer 2

a controlling meta-norm, where the ruler is above the law

Question 3

what are the features of an absolutist constitution

Answer 3

• no concept of popular sovereignty
• no separation of powers
• centralised and absolute power

Question 4

what is an example of an absolutist constitution

Answer 4

Saudi Arabia

Question 5

what is a legislative supremacy constitution

Answer 5

• the constitution is not entrenched
• parliamentary statutes are supreme
• no substantive constraints on parliamentary power

Question 6

what are constitutional rights

Answer 6

meta-norms that impose constraints on the exercise of public authority

Question 7

where is constitutional review decentralised

Answer 7

USA

Question 8

where is constitutional review centralised

Answer 8

Europe (Austria and Germany)

Question 9

what is judicial review in the USA

Answer 9

review performed by the judiciary in the normal course of litigation

Question 10

what is the European centralised model

Answer 10

where review is restricted to a constitutional court

Question 11

what can a majoritarian electoral system be described as

Answer 11

relies in elections featuring few competitors and identifiable future governments that thoroughly control policy making after the election

Question 12

what can a proportional electoral system be described as

Answer 12

stresses the superiority of multiparty electoral competition in taking account of the preferences of all citizens and the need for rules that fairly reflect the choices of citizens in the composition of the legislature

Question 13

how many countries have compulsory voting laws

Answer 13

26 of 203 (13%)

Question 14

what countries have compulsory voting

Answer 14

Brazil, Argentina and Australia

Question 15

what are term limits like with a president

Answer 15

always a fixed term

Question 16

what are term limit like in a parliamentary system

Answer 16

most often not fixed, but constitutionally determined maximum period

Question 17

what electoral system are majoritarian systems

Answer 17

FPTP, Two-Round Systems, Alternative Vote (AV)

Question 18

what happens in FPTP

Answer 18

the candidate with the most votes is elected

Question 19

what happens in two rounds systems (TRS)

Answer 19

if no candidate achieves a majority in the first round, the least successful candidates are eliminated and a second round takes place

Question 20

what happens in an alternative vote system

Answer 20

voters rank order of candidates. The lowest placed candidate is eliminated and his/her votes are redistributed to each voter’s second preference. The process is repeated until one candidate gets the majority (50% +1)

Question 21

what is a closed proportional system

Answer 21

voters may not rank individual candidates

Question 22

what is an open proportional system

Answer 22

voters may rank individual candidates

Question 23

what is single transferrable vote

Answer 23

the application of alternative vote to multi member districts. The requirement is set by the number of seats available

Question 24

why do electoral systems sometimes contain rules to prevent vert small parties from winning seats

Answer 24

to prevent fragmentation and facilitate a stable government

Question 25

what happened in the 2019 UK election to show the level of disproportionality

Answer 25

14.5 million people (43.5% of all voters) cast their vote for a non-elected candidate