Democracy and Participation Flashcards
What is meant by the term government?
The activity or system of governing a political unit. The set of institutions that exercise authority and make the rules of a political unit.
What is meant by the term executive?
The branch of government responsible for the implementation of policy.
What is meant by the term legislature?
The branch of government responsible for passing laws.
What is meant by the term judiciary?
The branch of government responsible for interpreting the law and deciding upon legal disputes.
What is meant by the term elective dictatorship?
When there is excessive concentration of power in the executive branch of government.
The Westminster Model is a form of government in which Parliament is…
sovereign, the executive and legislature are fused and political power is centralised.
In the Westminster Model, the constitution is…
uncodified and can be easily amended.
The Westminster Model is a system of representative democracy which ensures that…
government is held accountable through elections.
What are two advantages of the Westminster model?
The government is accountable to parliament for its actions and to the people through elections.
The rule of law defends basic civil liberties and ensures that power is not exercised arbitrarily. Ministers and officials aren’t above the law.
What are two disadvantages of the Westminster model?
There can be elective dictatorship through parliamentary sovereignty, the single-member plurality electoral system and executive dominance of the legislature, so parliament can do whatever it wants.
Power is concentrated at the centre so decisions are not taken close to the people.
What is the definition of democracy?
Democracy is a form of government in which the major decisions rest directly or indirectly on the freely given consent of the majority of the adults governed.
What is direct democracy and give an example?
Every citizen is able to participate directly in decision making. Eg. in Switzerland residents gather four times a year to vote on decisions like pension plan. If a case gains 50,000 signatures within 100 days, it becomes a referendum voted by the public.
What is indirect/ representative democracy and give an example?
Citizens elect representatives to make decisions for them. Popular participation in decision-making is limited. These representatives are chosen and removed at election time. The electoral process gives citizens control over government. Eg. the House of Commons
What is majoritarian democracy?
This is a system whereby the will or desires of the majority of the population are the prime considerations of the government.
What is parliamentary democracy?
This is a system where parliament stands as the highest form of authority. The executive branch is drawn from and accountable to the people’s representatives in parliament.
What is presidential democracy?
This is a system where the executive is elected separately from the legislative body and is therefore chosen by and directly accountable to the people.
Why are democratic states legitimate?
Legitimacy is associated with political stability and order.
It arises from below, through the consent of the public, usually provided by regular and competitive elections.
It is based on rule-governed behaviour, in this case achieved through the existence of a constitution.
What are the features of democratic states?
Free, fair and frequent elections
Universal suffrage (right to vote)
Civil liberties (equal treatment under law)
Constitutional government
Free, independent media
Capitalist economy (liberal choice)
With genuine democracy, what is the advantage of direct democracy and disadvantages of representative democracy?
Advantage: People only have to obey laws they make themselves. Participation in government is freedom.
Disadvantage: People feel powerless about making change as they have little meaningful control over government.
With personal development, what is the advantage of direct democracy and disadvantages of representative democracy?
Advantage: Citizens become informed about how society works and how it should work.
Disadvantage: Infrequent voting means people are less likely to learn about alternative choices and their likely outcomes.
With end of professional politics, what is the advantage of direct democracy and disadvantages of representative democracy?
Advantage: It reduces/removes the public’s dependence on self-serving politicians, increasing public trust and development of long-term solutions.
Disadvantage: politicians are not socially representative of everyone and care more about winning elections than the people.
With legitimate government, what is the advantage of direct democracy and disadvantages of representative democracy?
Advantage: people are more likely to accept decisions they have made themselves, which means political stability.
Disadvantage: voter turnout in the UK is low and people are increasingly disengaged from politicians.
With practicable democracy, what is the advantage of representative democracy and the disadvantage of direct democracy?
Advantage: it can operate in large, modern societies, so it is a practical solution.
Disadvantage: it is only achievable in relatively small communities as it is hard to get together for meetings.
With division of labour in politics, what is the advantage of representative democracy and the disadvantage of direct democracy?
Advantage: it is more efficient as citizens are not burdened with day-to-day decision making.
Disadvantage: it’s restricts citizens’ ability to carry out other duties and work except politics.
With government by experts, what is an advantage of representative democracy and a disadvantage of direct democracy?
Advantage: politicians have greater expertise and education, so act in the public interest.
Disadvantage: many big issues don’t have clear solutions, so it is not sensible.
With political stability, what is the advantage of representative democracy and the disadvantage of direct democracy?
Advantage: it distances ordinary citizens from policies so they’re encouraged to accept compromise.
Disadvantage: losers may not see the choice as legitimate, creating division in society.
What does the term participation crisis mean?
Crisis in citizen involvement in political processes about government undermines the legitimacy of elected institutions.
What are the three key areas that show people are unwilling to engage with politics?
Not voting
Not joining political parties
Not engaging with politics due to high levels of dissatisfaction with the current political system
What evidence is there that we do not have a participation crisis?
Participation has shifted from voting to disillusionment and cynicism with conventional party politics. This compensates for low voter turnout and declining party membership.
What has been happening to turnout in the UK elections in recent years? Can you think of a reason which might explain the trend?
It’s becoming smaller because people are unhappy with the actions of political parties.
Which groups of people are participating more? Less?
More- Higher income and education, a managerial and professional jobs, degrees and skills
Less- semi-skilled and unskilled
How have voters responded to European and devolved assembly elections?
Voter turnout is consistently lower than for general elections. European Parliament was perceived as remote and lacking power. It is argued that if the devolved governments were given more power then more people would vote.
How have voters reacted to referenda (plural of referendum)?
The voter turnout is inconsistent. It’s high for matters of considerable historical importance, like the Scottish Independence Referendum, but low for others.
