Democracy and Participation

Question 1

What is meant by the term government?

Answer 1

The activity or system of governing a political unit. The set of institutions that exercise authority and make the rules of a political unit.

Question 2

What is meant by the term executive?

Answer 2

The branch of government responsible for the implementation of policy.

Question 3

What is meant by the term legislature?

Answer 3

The branch of government responsible for passing laws.

Question 4

What is meant by the term judiciary?

Answer 4

The branch of government responsible for interpreting the law and deciding upon legal disputes.

Question 5

What is meant by the term elective dictatorship?

Answer 5

When there is excessive concentration of power in the executive branch of government.

Question 6

The Westminster Model is a form of government in which Parliament is…

Answer 6

sovereign, the executive and legislature are fused and political power is centralised.

Question 7

In the Westminster Model, the constitution is…

Answer 7

uncodified and can be easily amended.

Question 8

The Westminster Model is a system of representative democracy which ensures that…

Answer 8

government is held accountable through elections.

Question 9

What are two advantages of the Westminster model?

Answer 9

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.

Question 10

What are two disadvantages of the Westminster model?

Answer 10

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.

Question 11

What is the definition of democracy?

Answer 11

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.

Question 12

What is direct democracy and give an example?

Answer 12

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.

Question 13

What is indirect/ representative democracy and give an example?

Answer 13

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

Question 14

What is majoritarian democracy?

Answer 14

This is a system whereby the will or desires of the majority of the population are the prime considerations of the government.

Question 15

What is parliamentary democracy?

Answer 15

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.

Question 16

What is presidential democracy?

Answer 16

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.

Question 17

Why are democratic states legitimate?

Answer 17

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.

Question 18

What are the features of democratic states?

Answer 18

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)

Question 19

With genuine democracy, what is the advantage of direct democracy and disadvantages of representative democracy?

Answer 19

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.

Question 20

With personal development, what is the advantage of direct democracy and disadvantages of representative democracy?

Answer 20

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.

Question 21

With end of professional politics, what is the advantage of direct democracy and disadvantages of representative democracy?

Answer 21

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.

Question 22

With legitimate government, what is the advantage of direct democracy and disadvantages of representative democracy?

Answer 22

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.

Question 23

With practicable democracy, what is the advantage of representative democracy and the disadvantage of direct democracy?

Answer 23

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.

Question 24

With division of labour in politics, what is the advantage of representative democracy and the disadvantage of direct democracy?

Answer 24

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.

Question 25

With government by experts, what is an advantage of representative democracy and a disadvantage of direct democracy?

Answer 25

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.

Question 26

With political stability, what is the advantage of representative democracy and the disadvantage of direct democracy?

Answer 26

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.

Question 27

What does the term participation crisis mean?

Answer 27

Crisis in citizen involvement in political processes about government undermines the legitimacy of elected institutions.

Question 28

What are the three key areas that show people are unwilling to engage with politics?

Answer 28

Not voting
Not joining political parties
Not engaging with politics due to high levels of dissatisfaction with the current political system

Question 29

What evidence is there that we do not have a participation crisis?

Answer 29

Participation has shifted from voting to disillusionment and cynicism with conventional party politics. This compensates for low voter turnout and declining party membership.

Question 30

What has been happening to turnout in the UK elections in recent years? Can you think of a reason which might explain the trend?

Answer 30

It’s becoming smaller because people are unhappy with the actions of political parties.

Question 31

Which groups of people are participating more? Less?

Answer 31

More- Higher income and education, a managerial and professional jobs, degrees and skills
Less- semi-skilled and unskilled

Question 32

How have voters responded to European and devolved assembly elections?

Answer 32

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.

Question 33

How have voters reacted to referenda (plural of referendum)?

Answer 33

The voter turnout is inconsistent. It’s high for matters of considerable historical importance, like the Scottish Independence Referendum, but low for others.

Question 34

Which parties have lost members since the 1950s?

Answer 34

Conservative and Labour

Question 35

What reasons are given for membership decline?

Answer 35

Conservative and Labour represented the middle and working class (respectively). The decline is because class structures are out-of-date, and other divides like age, ethnicity, education and income are more important.

Question 36

Which parties have gained membership since the 1950s?

Answer 36

Liberal Democrats, Green, SNP and UKIP

Question 37

What reasons are given for membership resurgence with the LibDems, Green, SNP and UKIP?

Answer 37

People turn to smaller parties away from Labour and Conservative. People can participate more widely into policy and voting for the party leader rather than being subscribed to the party’s clubs (social facilities). A change in a party’s political approach, eg. Jeremy Corbyn is more radical.

Question 38

Why is the drop in party membership not a big concern?

Answer 38

Apathy is a sign of contentment for the political process. New forms of participation compensate for this, like signing petitions.

Question 39

What are trade unions and is membership increasing or decreasing?

Answer 39

Organisation made-up of members who are mainly workers. They look after their interests at work by negotiating arguments and discussing big changes. Huge membership decrease to 6.23 million in 2016, as membership was 13.2 million in 1979. There has been an explosion for environment groups. In 2013, nearly one in 10 adults were part of a trade union.

Question 40

Is membership increasing or decreasing for single issue groups?

Answer 40

There has been an increase as they are becoming more commonplace, such as through signing petitions.

Question 41

What is direct action and is membership increasing or decreasing?

Answer 41

Used by social movements to participate in political issues, such as through peaceful protests. There has been an increase in membership which is shown by a mass participation. Eg. BLM Protests in 2020

Question 42

What is political consumerism?

Answer 42

People buy products, like fair trade products, and boycott others to force brands to change and take more responsibility, eg. Fast fashion and anti-sweatshop consumerism.

Question 43

What are petitions?

Answer 43

Campaign organisations like change.org

Question 44

What are E-petitions?

Answer 44

The public can petition the House of Commons and press them for action from the government.

Question 45

What is clicktivism?

Answer 45

The signing of online petitions is part of this, allowing individuals to promote a cause online or through social media. Eg. Contact elected representatives, share and comment on news stories and join crowdfunding activities

Question 46

What are the benefits of individual participation?

Answer 46

People can express their own concerns rather than them being moderated by mass political parties. It engages people in politics in new ways that may revive democracy’s flagging fortunes. It especially gives young people a chance to get involved and be interested in politics. Without it, there would be a minority group showing interest, say now politics is more inclusive and representative.

Question 47

What are the drawbacks of individual participation?

Answer 47

It’s a low level of engagement that requires little effort. They are no replacement for political participation like voting or joining a political party.

Question 48

What is the first argument that the UK is suffering from a participation crisis?

Answer 48

There has been a long term decline in voter turnout in the UK general elections. There is also low voter turnout in other types of elections and referendums. Only 2/3 of registered voters actually voted in the 2010 general election.

Question 49

What is the second argument that the UK is suffering from a participation crisis?

Answer 49

There has been a long term decline in party membership since the 1950s in the UK, particularly for the two major parties. There has been a decline in party membership for Conservative and Labour.

Question 50

What is the third argument that the UK is suffering from a participation crisis?

Answer 50

New social movements undermine participation in political parties and voting, so reducing the legitimacy of our elected institutions. The anti-war movement and anti-capitalist movement undermine democratic participation such as working through elections, parties and Parliament.

Question 51

What is the first argument against the UK suffering from a participation crisis?

Answer 51

There are more opportunities to vote in the UK politics, with a revival of turnout in general elections and strong engagements with referendums. In the Brexit referendum, the majority of the UK came together to vote.

Question 52

What is the second argument against the UK suffering from a participation crisis?

Answer 52

There has been a recent revival in party membership on the quality of engagement in political parties is far higher than historically. Increase in party membership for SNP, Green Party, Liberal Democrats and UKIP.

Question 53

What is the third argument against the UK suffering from a participation crisis?

Answer 53

New social movements have created mass engagement in politics in an era of protest politics. New forms of political engagement are replacing the more traditional methods of voting and party membership. Black Lives Matter Protests created a huge wave of interest and political participation as millions of people, especially the youth, got involved three protests, petitions and social media/ political consumerism.

Question 54

What is meant by ‘the franchise’?

Answer 54

The ability and rights of someone to vote in an election.

Question 55

How is the franchise extended in the UK?

Answer 55

Through Acts extended to new minorities.

Question 56

What was the Great Reform Act and when was it?

Answer 56

1832- anyone who owned property worth more than 10 pounds could vote (the middle classes). Size of electorate=8%. Rotten boroughs were abolished and more seats were allocated to the new industrial towns.

Question 57

What was the Second Reform Act and when was it?

Answer 57

1867- Anyone who paid rent worth at least £10 a year or owned a small plot of land (urban working classes and rural middle classes) could vote. Size of electorate=16%

Question 58

What was the Ballot Act And when was it?

Answer 58

1872- introduced the secret ballot prevent voter intimidation and reduced corruption.

Question 59

What was the Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act and when was it?

Answer 59

1883- Rules were established for how much a candidate could spend on what they could spend the money on in a campaign, in order to reduce bribery in elections.

Question 60

What was the Redistribution of Seats Act (third Reform Act) and when was it?

Answer 60

1885- Agricultural labourers (rural working class) could vote. Size of electorate=28%. This reallocated 142 seats from the South of England to the industrial centres of the north and Scotland. This broke the traditional dominance of the South in Westminster politics.

Question 61

What was the Representation of the People Act and when was it?

Answer 61

1969- all men and women aged over 18 could vote. Size of electorate=97%

Question 62

What are the requirements to vote in UK elections?

Answer 62

You have to be aged over 18.

Question 63

Which four groups of people do not have the right to vote in the UK?

Answer 63

Under eighteens
mentally incapable
prisoners
a peer (he sits in the House of Lords).