democracy and political participation Flashcards
what is legitimacy
the right to and validity of a claim
what is direct democracy
forms of direct participation of citizens in democratic decision making
originated in ancient athens
public meetings
all adult males had a say
advantages of direct democracy
everyone gets a say
technology makes it easier to find out what people think
equal weight given to each vote
encourages popular participation
develops sense of community and responsibility
disadvantages of direct democracy
Can divide community - scotland voted remain in EU, england left
Tyranny of majority - minority often ignored/intimidated by majority
Can undermine representative democracy - politicians avoid difficult decisions for country even though it’s what they’ve been voted in to do
Lack of accountability - people can’t be held directly accountable if it goes wrong
Difficult for large populations - what if winston churchill had to call a referendum every time he was going to send troops into battle in WWII
Decision making could be too complicated for ordinary citizens - many people did not understand brexit
what is a pluralist democracy
Power is distributed among many different interest groups, rather than being concentrated in the hands of a few elites
what is representative democracy
citizens vote for representatives to rule on their behalf
people elect representatives - expected to exercise their judgement, can be removed at next election
usual form of democracy in the modern world
advantages of representative democracy
Can be voted out if something goes wrong
Representatives can become experts in field and make informed decisions
Encourages pluralist democracy - contrasting ideas and opinions from opposite parties/groups
Possibility of compromise
Gives a right to minority - raised causes that would not be raised in direct democracy
Better training for future leaders of country
disadvantages of representative democracy
Don’t always do what’s best for country - more to better their career, pursue own agendas
Some politicians may be corrupt or incompetent
Not all voters get representative they want - first past the post
May not address minorities concerns - politicians seek to win over majorities to stay in power
Politicians play on fear to maintain power
Some constituencies have safe seats so vote has more weight - little unfair
what is casual representation
mostly carried out by pressure groups, not representing people so much as ideas, principles and causes
what is occupational and social representation
representatives represent a particular occupation or social group and will vote to support these interests
what is party representation
parties have specific opinions on issues and policies and party representatives should vote in their parties favour
what is constituency representation
the whole constituency has similar social and geographical concerns which the MP will represent and speak about to the elected body. Issues could be form the constituency as a whole, individual grievances or asking constituency about national issues
what is representing the national interest
represent the interests of the nation by doing what is right, not just what the general public wants
what is social representation
representatives should be similar in character to the characteristics of the people they represent, same proportion of women and people of colour
the levels of representation in uk
- National Government
- Devolved Government
- Metropolitan authorities*
- Combined authorities
- Local Councils
- Parish or Town Councils*
*only applies in England and Wales
All UK citizens are represented at three levels at least - many have four or five. It is clear that representation has become increasingly decentralised with the advent of devolution.
forms of representation in the uk
Constituencies
parties
Government representation
Pressure groups
what is a peaceful transition of power
not guaranteed in many societies, those who lose power by democratic means accept the authority of those who have won, If they don’t, politics breaks down and non-peaceful conflict is likely to ensue, helps to ensure that democracy can hold governments to account and ensures the legitimacy of those who have won an election
what are free elections
all adults are free to vote and to stand for office, described as ‘universal suffrage’, If significant groups are excluded then elections are not truly free and democracy is flawed, need to be free to ensure that everyone can exercise their right to vote without fear, threats or intimidation, secret ballot, rights to vote strictly enforced by the courts in order to ensure people are not unfairly denied the right to vote If a secret ballot and a strict adherence to these rights is not in place, votes can be bought, voters can be coerced into voting a certain way, or not at all.
what are fair elections
A more difficult criterion: in the strictest sense, this means everyone has one vote and all votes are of equal value, safeguards in place to avoid electoral fraud and ballot rigging, what may appear fair to some will appear unfair to others, candidate who wins the most votes can be said to have won the election fairly, but if they gained only 25% of the total votes case, then it could be seen as unfair as 75% of voters did not choose that candidate.
what is widespread participation in politics
important for the health of democracy that a large proportion of the population participates in politics, well-informed and active population can prevent the government from becoming too dictatorial, and without participation, there is a breakdown in communication between the government and the governed.
what is freedom of expression and information
right of the people to express their opinions and criticise the government, civil liberty, people cannot be arrested or persecuted for expressing negative opinions of those in power, their policies or their competence, should be free access to public information to enable the people to check the government and how well it is governing, Few governments enjoy being criticised or scrutinised, but this is what marks out a democracy from a dictatorship
what is freedom of associated
Linked to freedom of expression, means the freedom to form parties or pressure groups, provided their aims and methods are legal, Parties and pressure groups are such vital vehicles for representation that if they did not exist, or were suppressed, democracy would be almost impossible to sustain.
what is the protection of rights and liberties
Linked to freedom of expression and association, rights and liberties of citizens should be firmly safeguarded,there should be some kind of enforceable ‘Bill of Rights’ or ‘Basic Laws’ to protect rights and liberties in such a way that the state cannot erode them. In the UK, the Human Rights Act performs this role, while the Equalities and Human Rights Commission operates in England and Wales to promote and protect human rights.
what is the rule of law
basic principle that all citizens should be treated equally under the laws, the government itself should be subject to the same laws as its citizens, linked to the concept of limited government and ensures that no one, even those in power, can break the law, if they do, they will be held to account on the same basis as anyone else
what is an independent judiciary
key role of the judiciary in a democracy to ensure that the rule of law is upheld, members of the judiciary (the judges) must be independent from government and the whole process of politics, will ensure that all individuals and groups in society are treated equally under the law and that the government does not exceed its authority, also means that the rights and liberties of citizens are more likely to be upheld
what is a constitution
Democracy is at risk if there are not firm limits to the power of government. Without these, there is a possibility that the government will set aside democratic principles for its own purposes. We expect this to happen sometimes in times of warfare and emergency, but not normally. The usual way to set the limits of government power is to define them in a constitution that will be enforced by the forces of law.
what is a democratic deficit
the lack of democracy in political institutions and procedures compared to an ideal model
democratic deficit in the uk
the FPTP system for general elections produces disproportional results, renders many votes waster and elects governments with a relatively small proportion of the popular vote. It discriminates against small parties with dispersed support.
The House of Lords has considerable influence but is an unelected body.
The sovereignty of Parliament, in theory, gives unlimited potential power to the government.
The powers of the Prime Minister are partly based on the authority of an unelected monarch.
MPs from devolved areas (e.g. Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales) can vote in measures that no longer affect their constituents. (The West Lothian question).
Powerful vested interests provide funding to political parties.
Voter turnout in general elections varies, with a historic low of 59.4% in 2001.
is the uk in urgent need of democratic reform
UK democracy is outdated
UK democracy is ineffective
The peers in the house of lord are unaccountable
FPTP is not good
We need effective checks like a strong judiciary or codified constitution
Our rights are notprotected
Referendums are silly
Without urgent reform, the UK is heading to crisis - may spell the end of the UK as a democratic nation
Easy to operate and understand
Maintains strong links between MPs and constituents
Keeps out fringe/extremist parties
advantage of replacing the House of Lords with an elected chamber
It would remove an unelected, unaccountable body from the UK’s democratic process
disadvantages of replacing the House of Lords with an elected chamber
Replacement might cause greater rivalry with the HoC, leading to gridlock in the political process
The expertise in the Lords could potentially be replaced by career politicians
advantages of replacing the FPTP electoral system with a more proportional one
It would remove the negative features of FPTP, such as safe seats, minority constituencies, unfair representation and governments with a minority of support
disadvantages of replacing the FPTP electoral system with a more proportional one
Proportional systems make coalitions more likely and harder to hold to account. The systems are more complex and risk losing the close MP-constituency link that currently exists
advantages of codifying the uk constitution
It would clarify the processes of the UK political system and provide a higher law that would be entrenched, rather than the flexibility of the current uncodified constitution
disadvantages of codifying the uk constitution
A codified constitution might prove too rigid and there are questions about who would write it and how it would be implemented. It would raise questions over the location of sovereignty
It would give more power to unelected judges
advantages of creating a devolved english parliament to equalise devolution
It would solve the West Lothian question and create a more equal level of representation across the UK
disadvantages of creating a devolved english parliament to equalise devolution
England is too large a single entity to work within a devolved system but regional devolution has been rejected by voters (2004 North East England devolution referendum - 77.9% no vote on a turnout of c44%)
advantages of introducing state party funding
it would allow politicians to focus on their main job instead of fundraise
It would, potentially, remove the need to acquire money from powerful groups and vested interests that donate for their own ends, not the national interest
disadvantages of introducing state party funding
The process of fundraising helps to keep politicians and parties connected to voters
Questions over how funding would be allocated and whether taxpayer money should be given to parties that some might find objectionable
advantages of introducing compulsory voting
It would increase turnout in all elections, helping to improve the legitimacy of elected officials
disadvantages of introducing compulsory voting
forcing people to vote might not improve public engagement with politics
The right to vote also includes the right not to vote
advantages of replacing the monarch with an elected head of state (president)
It would remove an unelected figurehead and replace them with an elected and accountable figure
disadvantages of replacing the monarch with an elected head of state (president)
the monarchy is popular and, being neutral, can act as a unifying figure in a way an elected politician cannot
what is a participation crisis
a decline in the number of people actively engaging in political activities or voting in elections
