Electoral systems

Question 1

What are the mechanisms that enhance participation (6)

Answer 1

Compulsory voting, anyone can start/join a political party or form pressure groups, right to free media, implied freedom of speech, constitution protects political freedoms

Question 2

4 types of representation in parliament

Answer 2

Delegate, trustee, partisan, mirror

Question 3

What is delegate representation

Answer 3

people present their values, concerns and interests to their representative who re-presents them to parliament, translates words of electorate directly to parliament, personal views don’t count

Question 4

What is trustee representation

Answer 4

people trust their representative’s judgement to represent their best interests, less reliant on frequent communication with parliament

Question 5

What is partisan representation

Answer 5

representatives are members of political parties and act in accordance to their party, e.g. representative always sides with party even if it doesn’t favour their electorate

Question 6

What is mirror representation

Answer 6

the legislative chamber’s composition reflects the composition of the society it represents, e.g if there are 41% males and 59% females in society it would be the same in parliament

Question 7

What should/is the representation in the house of reps

Answer 7

Should be delegate and mirror but in reality partisan

Question 8

What should/is the representation in the senate

Answer 8

Should be trustee but in reality is partisan and partially mirror

Question 9

What are the principles of a democratic election

Answer 9

Free, open, fair, regular

Question 10

How is the election principle ‘free’ upheld

Answer 10

upheld in all 3 types of elections, all citizens have a right to vote using a secret ballot, however people in prison for 3+ years can’t vote and compulsory voting means no right not to vote

Question 11

How is the election principle ‘open’ upheld

Answer 11

Upheld in all 3 types of elections, independent electoral commission and public scrutiny minimises corruption, also free media however it doesn’t have much diversity

Question 12

How is the election principle ‘fair’ upheld

Answer 12

Upheld in preferential and proportional voting but not first past the post, everyone’s vote is treated equally and worth the same, minor parties are also treated the same, however there is constitutionally enshrined malapportionment

Question 13

How is the election principle ‘regular’ upheld

Answer 13

Upheld in all 3 types of elections, elections must be held every 3 years in HOR and 6 years in senate, however gov decides when the election is and gov can become more focused on votes than job

Question 14

Progression of voting

Answer 14

secret ballot established, women allowed to vote and run for parliament, preferential voting introduced, compulsory voting introduced, proportional representation introduced in the senate, Aboriginal people allowed to vote, all citizens are required to vote

Question 15

When was the secret ballot established

Answer 15

1856

Question 16

When did parliament allow women to vote and run for parliament

Answer 16

1902

Question 17

When was preferential voting introduced

Answer 17

1918

Question 18

When was compulsory voting introduced

Answer 18

1924

Question 19

What was proportional representation introduced into the senate

Answer 19

1949

Question 20

When did Aboriginal people gain the right to vote

Answer 20

1962

Question 21

When was every Australian citizen subject to the same voting laws

Answer 21

1983

Question 22

First past the post voting

Answer 22

Electors vote for only 1 person, person with most votes wins

Question 23

Advantages of first past the post voting

Answer 23

Quick and easy to count, easy to cast vote, one candidate represents electors- easier accountability, winner’s bonus

Question 24

Disadvantages of first past the post voting

Answer 24

Creates a 2 party system- realistically only major parties can win, high vote wastages, more vote splitting (candidates from same party compete against each other), doesn’t properly represent the electorate

Question 25

Preferential voting

Answer 25

Electors number the candidates from most preferred to least preferred and the candidates must have absolute majority (50%+1) to win

Question 26

Advantages of preferential voting

Answer 26

Absolute majority means majority of people are represented, limited vote splitting, less vote wastage, promotes accountability

Question 27

Disadvantages of preferential voting

Answer 27

promotes underrepresentation and overrepresentation- harder for minor parties to win, high number of informal votes, takes longer to count

Question 28

Proportional voting

Answer 28

Aims to reflect the proportion of the votes received by a political party as a proportion of seats gained in parliament, used in multi-member electorates

Question 29

Advantages of proportional voting

Answer 29

doesn’t usually result in gov maj allowing senate to function as house of review, greater diversity that reflects society, easier for minor parties to get elected=fairer, less vote wastage

Question 30

Disadvantages of proportional voting

Answer 30

Harder to pass legislation if gov doesn’t have maj- can cause an impasse meaning parties can’t compromise, less accountability as there is a weak link between voters and representative, higher rate of informal voting below the line

Question 31

What is the impact on the crossbench of preferential voting?

Answer 31

2019 election- crossbench was only 6

2022 election- crossbench is 16

Question 32

What is the impact on informal votes by preferential voting

Answer 32

2019 election- 5.54% of informal votes

2022 election- 5.08% of informal votes

Question 33

What occurred when the 2016 double dissolution happened

Answer 33

The quota almost halved from 14% to 7.7% meaning the crossbench had 20 members which has since decreased to 15 seats in 2019 and 16 seats in 2022

Question 34

What is gerrymandering

Answer 34

Drawing district lines to achieve a specific goal such as drawing lines that favour certain parties by things such as grouping allot of a party’s voters together to increase vote wastage

Question 35

Why isn’t gerrymandering democratic

Answer 35

It goes against separation of powers as it gives the state legislators the power to draw lines meaning they can draw them to favour the party they are a part of

Question 36

Why doesn’t Australia have gerrymandering

Answer 36

Committees of public officials that are independent to the government, parliament and political parties draw Australia’s electorate boundaries making gerrymandering more unlikely