Democracy and participation Flashcards
What are the two main democratic systems?
- Direct Democracy
- Representitive Democracy
What is direct democracy?
Individuals participate directly making decisions at public meetings
What is representitive democracy?
Citizens elect representitives to make decisions on their behalf
Which democratic system is best suted for large populations?
Representitive democracy
Which democratic system has citizens making collective decisons in large meetings?
Direct democracy
In which democratic system do citizens elect representives to make decisions on their behalf?
Representitive democracy
In representitive democracy are representitves delegates or trustees?
Trustees
Make decisons based on own judgement on behalf of citizens
Name an example of direct democracy
Referendum
Give an example of a representive democracy
UK - MP’s sit in parliament representing their constituents
Which democratic system includes more safeguards for minorities?
Direct/Representitive
Representitive democracy
Name an advantage of direct democracy
- Equal weight for all votes
- Encorages participation
- Sense of community
Name a disadvantage of direct democracy
- Impractical in large populations
- People do not want to/do not feel qualified taking part
- Minority viewpoints likely to be ignored
Name an advantage of representitive democracy
- Parites formed- make choice easier
- Reduces ‘Tyrrany of the Majority’
- Representives held accountable in elections
- Politicians experts- more informed than average citizen
What is the ‘Tyrrany of the Majority’?
When the majority opinion leads to minority needs being disregarded
Name some disadvantages of representitve democracy
- Can cause reduced participation
- Often run by elites
- Politicians avoid accounability
- Representives may be corrupt/incompetent
What is a pluralist democracy?
Decisions made as a result of contributions from multipule parties/pressure groups
Give examples of Direct Democracy being used in the UK
(There are 2)
- Referendums
- 2015 Recall of MP’s act
What is the 2015 Recall of MP’s Act?
Allows a petition to be triggered if an MP suspended for over 21 days. If 10% of constitiuents sign- byelection triggred
Define Legitimacy
Legal right to exercise power
Define democratic deficit
Percieved deficciency in a democratic bodies accountability/ policy making
Where do modern goverments get their legitimacy from?
Citizens
Which electoral system is used to elect Parliament in the UK?
First past the post
Is the House of Commons elected?
Yes
Is the House of Lords elected?
No
When was the Human Rights Act passed?
1998
Which act incorporates the European Convention on Human Rights into UK law?
1988 Human Rights Act
What did the 1988 Human Rights Act do?
Incorporate the European Convention on Human Rights into UK law
Name 2 newspapers controlled by Rupert Murdoch?
- The Times
- The Sun
Is the UK considered to be suffering a participation crisis?
Yes
Define a participation crisis
Political engagement from the population low
Low political engagement in a population
Which key term best matches this definition
Participation crisis
What was the average turnout at General Elections between 1945-1997?
76%
Which years general election had the lowest turnout since WW1?
2001
Is turnout usually higher in General elections or second order elections?
General elections
Give some examples of ‘second order’ elections
- Devolved assembley’s
- Local council elections
What was the average turnout in the May 2016 Local Elections for England?
33.8%
Why is turnout in by-elections usually lower?
People are not choosing a govenment, only their MP
What was the turnout in the Feburary 2017 Stoke on Trent by election?
38.2%
What was the voter turnout of the 2012 Police and Crime Comissioner elections?
15%
Thus the lowest in any UK competition
Why was the Turnout so low for the 2012 Police and crime comissioner elections?
- People did not understand the purpouse of PCC’s
- People had no disire to vote for PCC’s
How much of the 2022 electorate is a member of a political party?
1.5%
How much of the 1983 electorte was a member of a political party?
3.8%
How many members did the Conservative party have in 2016?
150,000
How many members did the Consevative party have in the mid 1990’s?
400,000
How many members did the Labour party have while last in Government?
Blair/Brown
190,000
How many members did Labour have in 2016?
515,000
Which Leader lead to a rise in Labour party membership?
Jeremy Corbyn
Has the Conservative party membership risen or fallen in the past 50 years?
Fallen
How many members did the Liberal democrats have in the early 2000’s?
70,000
How many members did the Liberal Democrats have during the 2010-15 Coalition?
49,000
How many members did the Liberal Democrats have in 2017?
82,000
What happend to the Liberal Democrat membership during coalition?
Fell
Has the Liberal Democrat membership recovered since the 2017 election?
Yes
2017- 82,000
Has the membership of smaller parties increased or decreased recently?
Increased
SNP-25,000(2013)- 120,000(2016)
How much of the Vote in the 2017 General Election when to smaller parties?
(parties other than Conservatives, Lib dems, and Labour)
24.8%
Can you become a member of a pressure group?
Yes
How has social media impacted democracy?
- People able to exchange political views
- Online Campaigns on issues
- Election campaigns utilise social media
What is an example of e-democracy in the UK?
E-petition
What is political apathy?
Lack of awareness/interest in political events/issues
What is a lack of political awareness known as?
Political apathy
What was the turnout for the Scottish Independence referendum in 2014?
84.6%
What was the turnout for the 2016 EU referendum?
72.2%