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POL 103 > Midterm 2 > Flashcards

Midterm 2 Flashcards

1
Q

What are reasons why political parties are formed?

A

It improves
1) representation
2) governance
3) opposition
4) efficiency

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2
Q

Parties are exclusively democratic- T or F

A

False; Authoritarian governments also have parties

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3
Q

What are factions?

A

groups that emerge around coherent principles and seek to affect public policy by getting elected

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4
Q

What are possible 3 organizing principles for factions and their breakdowns?

A

1) IDEOLOGY
-Economic Left-Right issues, cultural issues, specific policy issues
2) IDENTITY
3) OPPOSING ANOTHER FACTION

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5
Q

What is a party system?

A

a relatively stable group of different political parties, number of parties, and level of fragmentation

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6
Q

What’s a popular measure of party systems?

A

Effective Number of Electoral Parties (ENEP)

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7
Q

What is the definition of a one-party system and are they democratic?

A

Only 1 party has the right to form a government as other parties are banned/tolerated only as partial players; no

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8
Q

What country is an example of the 1.5 Party System/Dominant Party system and how did it operate?

A

Post War Japan & The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)
-The LDP had a majority government every election cycle, it occasionally lost power, but still remained top dog

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9
Q

What countries are examples of a 2 party system and what are the system’s characteristics?

A

The US & Democrats-Republicans, Jamaica, Ghana (trend is countries all colonized by the British)
-common in presidential systems
-common in areas that use single-member district electoral systems

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10
Q

What countries are examples of a multi-party system and what are the system’s characteristics?

A

Switzerland & 4 parties are represented, but the exact distribution of those seats change over time
-most common system around the world
-usually has coalition governments
-most popular in parliamentary systems and systems with proportional representation election systems

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11
Q

What are the two theories used to answer the question of: “Why does a given country have the political parties it has?”

A

1) Historical-Sociological Theory
2) Institutional-Organizational Theory

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12
Q

How does the Historical-Sociological Theory answer the question of “Why does a given country have the political parties it has?”
(2 events)

A

Parties represent entrenched and lasting social divisions in society
-In Europe, social divisions originated from the
1) National Revolution
in where parties represented regional or religious identities that we are sometimes in conflict with the central/national state
2) Industrial Revolution
in where parties represent class groups

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13
Q

What 2 main players opposed nationalism in Europe in the National Revolution?

A

1) The Peripheries
-autonomous regions that resisted centralization
2) The Catholic Church
-used to be the only game in town

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14
Q

What was the general social and economic outcome that occurred because of the Industrial Revolution?

A

Redistribution of wealth through welfare states to address new risks and social inequality

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15
Q

According to the Historical Sociological Model, what were the 2 new conflicts created as a result of the Industrial Revolution and their overviews?

A

1) Rural v. Urban
-parties form around social divisions

2) Owners of Capital v. Workers (universal decision left v. right)
-owners want the state to help businesses thrive
-workers seek protections and support from the state

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16
Q

What are 2 critiques of Lipset-Rokkan’s Historical Sociological model?

A

1) Very Deterministic
-ignores agency of individuals

2) It doesn’t always work
-not everyone votes for the party they should per the “predicted party”

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17
Q

How does the Institutionalist-Organizational theory answer the question of “Why does a given country have the political parties it has?” (1 main reason)

A

Electoral institutions are the driver of party systems
-how elections are structured creates certain incentives for candidates and parties
-these incentives, in turn, determine how many parties can compete

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18
Q

What is a single member district (SMDs)?

A

an electoral district represented by a single office-holder

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19
Q

What does Duverger’s Law say about SMDs?

A

“In districts with M seats, the # of viable candidates, that is the # of candidates that will receive votes won’t exceed M + I”
i.e, only 2 parties should exist

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20
Q

What is a multi-member district (MMDs)?

A

an electoral district represented by multiple office-holders

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21
Q

What are the 3 main behaviors of partisan competition?

A

1) Issue Positions
-“why do parties take the issue positions they do?”

2) Issue emphasis
-“During campaigns, why do political parties emphasize certain issues and not others?”

3) Policymaking
-“When in power, why do parties pass certain policies and not others?

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22
Q

What are the 3 main schools of thought for partisan competition and their predictions?

A

1) Political Sociology
-parties and voters don’t change much over time

2) Rational Choice
-parties and voters are rational actors respond to one another

3) Salience
-parties structure options (not drastically tho) and voters are assumed to respond rationally
-mix of previous two theories

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23
Q

What are 2 benefits of having a greater scale of government?

A

1) lower proportional costs = lower transaction costs

2) a common marketplace
-a standardization of weights and measure

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24
Q

What are the 2 characteristics of empires?

A

1) Empires may contain multiple “states” and multiple nations
2) Empires “encompass, but do not homogenize” their populations

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25
Q

What is the main tradeoff with empires?

A

The quality of governance increases (state capacity)
BUT the difficulty of balancing interests of multiple, diverse communities also increases (state autonomy)

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26
Q

What are the 2 ways in which empires respond to this tradeoff?

A

1) Accomodate (indirect rule)
-allowing some autonomy at the cost of financial, physical, or human resources

2) Assimilate
-inducing members of a community to adopt a dual identity
-more difficult

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27
Q

What union illustrates the community vs. scale tradeoff?

A

European Union (EU)

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28
Q

What 4 freedoms are market liberalism centered around?

A

1) goods
2) services
3) capital
4) people

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29
Q

How did the European Union scale and in what 2 ways?

A

Accomodation (primary strategy); national leaders are strongest actors
- 1) elite level negotiations and technocratic solutions
- 2) limited input of EU member-state citizens

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30
Q

What does Brexit represent and how does it relate to populism?

A

-the rejection of the European project and identity; the spread of the European identity is uneven

-calls for national autonomy “community” can reverse the growth of the empire

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31
Q

What was the main reason for why voters opted to leave the EU?

A

Immigration

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32
Q

What is populism?

A

a thin-centered ideology that separates society into 2 conflicting groups:
The People v. The Elite

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33
Q

What are 2 reasons social scientists cite for the rise of populism?

A

1) Economic insecurity
-economic anxiety leads to in-group vs. out-group rhetoric

2) Cultural Backlash
-national identity threatened by globalization

34
Q

What are 2 reasons as to why the UK was so prone to populism?

A

1) Great Recession led to an “age of austerity”
-economically vulnerable felt betrayed by establishment politicians
-leading to an increase in support for parties with anti-system messages

2) A failure of assimilation
-ex. Brits, more likely to identify with national identity than European identity

35
Q

There was great societal divisions between young and old people when it came to voting on Brexit-T or F

A

True

36
Q

What is a electoral system?

A

a system by which voters choose their reps

37
Q

What are the 4 ways in which electoral systems shape political competition?

A

1) Creating incentives for voters

2) Creating incentives for incumbents, candidates, parties

3) Shaping Candidate selection

4) Strengthening/weakening checks and balances
-majority rule v. protection of minorities

37
Q

What are the pros and cons of SMDs?

A

PROS
-strong local ties
- politicians need to appeal directly to population in order to get elected
-more efficient

CONS
-more wasted votes
-only plurality is represented
-small parties are disadvantaged

37
Q

What is First Past the Post (FPTP) System and what 2 things should I know about it?

A

WHAT?
means to win with the most, but not necessarily the majority of the votes

WHAT ELSE TO KNOW?
-classic SMD electoral system
-how districts are defined really matters here

38
Q

What are 2 alternative versions of SMDs that can create majorities and how they work?

A

1) Instant runoff
2) Top 2 runoff

in these the smaller parties are eliminated and their votes are redistributed to 2nd ranked parties

39
Q

What is the Proportional Representation (PR) System and what ___ things should I know about it?

A

WHAT?
Seats are proportional to the vote share of parties

WHAT ELSE TO KNOW?
-classic MMD system
-smaller districts improve local representation
-larger districts provide more accurate representation of the national population
-voters vote for parties, not candidates

40
Q

What is a coalition?

A

When two or more parties do not have enough seats to form a majority, they join to achieve their common goal

41
Q

What are the 2 cons of coalitions?

A

1) endless gridlock (no policymaking)
2) minority governments

42
Q

What are the 2 democracies Ljiphart argue exists and how do they work?

A

1) Majoritarian Democracies
-“creates and empowers majorities”, but doesn’t mean it represents them

2) Consensus Democracies
-institutions are set up to make smaller parties have a seat at the table

43
Q

What are 4 examples of formal government institutions?

A

1) legislatures
2) courts
3) political party
4) interest group systems

44
Q

What are 7 traits of Majoritarian Democracies and an example?

A

1) Two party system
2) Centralized Government
3) Unicameralism
4) Constitutional Flexibility
5) No Judicial review
6) Central Bank controlled by the Executive
7) Disproportional outcomes

Ex. Great Britain

45
Q

What are 6 traits of Consensus Democracies and an example?

A

1) Multi-party system
2) Federal/decentralized government
3) Bicameralism
4) Constitutional Rigidity
5) Executive power-sharing
8) Proportional outcomes

Ex. Lebanon

46
Q

How does a mixed electoral system work?

A

It combines plurality or majority SMD with PR
-voters get 2 votes: one for a candidate and the other for a party

47
Q

What is a referendum?

A

a national ballot on a particular policy issue; called only by government/members of a legislature

48
Q

What is a initiative?

A

a publicly intiated national referendum

49
Q

What is a plebiscte?

A

a non-binding referendum

50
Q

What is political violence and what are the 4 different types?

A

politically motivated violence
1) revolutions
2) interstate war
3) civil war
4) riots

51
Q

What is a state actor?

A

military/state security forces such as police

52
Q

What is a non-state actor?

A

non-govt. militia/ armed group/rebel group/ terrorist group

53
Q

What are the 3 types of explanations for political violence and how do they work?

A

1) Institutional
-certain institutions increase political tensions and limit available solutions to conflicts, increasing violence
-structure vs. agency
-deterministic/macrolevel

2) Ideological
-ideologies/beliefs that justify violence or interpret it as neccessary
ex. democracy, anti imperialism

3) Individual
Psychological Lens
-individual alienation from society/discrimination makes people rebel against existing power struggles

Economic Lens
-individuals derive benefits from engaging in violence

54
Q

What is terrorism?

A

a politically motivated attack by a non-state actor against civilian targets for the purpose of influencing a group larger than immediate victims
-strategy not an identity

55
Q
A
56
Q

What are 3 key takeaways about terrorism?

A

1) claims few lives compared to other forms of political violence
2) a strategy used by comparatively weak groups
3) ineffective

57
Q

How are weak groups defined?

A

groups that can’t win outright in military confrontation with their adversary

58
Q

What are the 3 challenges of post-conflict societies and their solutions?

A

1) lack of sovereignty, uncertainty
solution: descalate conflict/negotiate

2) unpunished human rights abuses and violence
solution: amnesty if they tell the truth

3) creating new “rules of the game”
solution: finding institutional solutions that help solve entrenched social divisions and inequality

59
Q

What did the Loyalists/Unionists believe?

A

-want to maintain union with Great Britain
-see Great Britain as protection against unification with Ireland
-Protestant

60
Q

What did the Nationalists believe?

A

-want to reunify with Northern Ireland
-Catholic

61
Q

What does “The Troubles” refer to?

A

the conflict between Ulster Loyalists, Nationalists, and British troops

62
Q

What are 4 things to remember about the Good Friday Agreement (GFA)?

A

multilateral agreement between UK and Ireland; softened the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland

-was voted on by Northern Irish citizens and Irish citizens
-Nationalists and Loyalists had veto power
-favored decentralization and community autonomy
-recruited Catholic police officers and removed British symbols

63
Q

What are past examples of authoritarian regimes and current ones?

A

PAST
-Fascist: Nazi Regime in Germany
-Communist: USSR under Stalin
PRESENT
-Communism: North Korea under Kim Jong Un

64
Q

What is an oligarchy and what are its traits?

A

a small group of people having control of a country, organization, or institution

-public not involved in selecting leaders/public policy
-lack of government accountability
-restrictions on individual freedoms

65
Q

Authoritarianism is a spectrum-T or F

A

True

66
Q

What are 5 different types of full authoritarian regimes?

A

1) Personal/monarchial rule
2) Military rule
3) One party rule
4) Theocracy
5) Illiberal rule

67
Q

What was famous political scientist Fukuyama’s theory and was he right?

A

after the fall of the USSR and the end of the cold war, there would be more democracy

not really; more than 50% of all countries have a non-democratic regime

68
Q

What does modernization mean?

A

social and economic changes;
with social changes being:
-urbanization
- secularism
-changes in gender relations
-erosion of social hierarchies
economic changes being
-industralization
-wage growth
-growth of middle class

69
Q

What authoritarian theory is the opposite of Fukuyama’s?

A

modernization leads to authoritarianism

70
Q

What are 2 explanations as to why authoritarianism persists?

A

1) Inequality and Elites
-if holding onto power means preserving wealth and life, elites will dig in and repress all dissent

2) Society
-demand for and supply of populism; can lead to democratic backsliding

71
Q

What is the resource course and what are some examples?

A

The idea that nations with a lot of resources become vulnerable to autocracy
Ex. Diamonds & Zimbabwe, Oil and Venezuela

72
Q

The less institutionalized democracy is, the smaller the threat of populism-T or F

A

False; The MORE institutionalized, the smaller the threat of populism

73
Q

What are 4 aspects of competitive authoritarianism?

A

1) The political playing field is uneven
–limit the press ability to criticize leaders and support opposition
-harrass and kill journalists
-make it difficult for certain groups to vote
-outlaw opposition parties

2) A post-cold war phenomenon
-The cost of outright dictatorship became too risky

3) The international bar was raised to the level of elections, but not to the the level of democracy
how to raise democracy:
-protect journalists and opposition leaders
-prevent leaders from abusing their power to win the elections

4) The problem with competitive authoritarianism is that it slips under the international ruler
-piece by piece dismantling of institutions

74
Q

What are the 3 paths out to competitive authoritarianism?

A

1) Strong Domestic opposition
-usually leads to democracy
-uncommon

2) Rotten door transitions
-collapse from within
-not conductive to democracy
-common

3) International Linkage
-strong external pressure
-usually leads to democracy

75
Q

What is Inglehardt’s arguement for income inequality?

A

-Income inequality rises again after dip during Great Depression and wartime
-top 1% hold majority of wealth
-politics today are more about social issues, than economic issues
-with a focus more on economic issues, income equality will lessen

76
Q

How do Mudde and Kaltwaser define populism?

A

-thin-centered ideology; can be left or right
-“us vs. them” mentality
-skepticism of elites
-group boundaries
-heavy rhetoric around immigration

77
Q

What is executive aggrandizement?

A

roll back democracy slowly; more common after Cold War

78
Q

According to Bermeo, what is democratic backsliding?

A

the state-led elimination or debilitation of any institutions that sustain democracy

79
Q

What are some types of democratic backsliding?

A

1) Coups d’etat
llegal attempts by the military or other state elites to oust incumbent
-declined after Cold War

2) Executive Coups
freely elected executive suspends the Constitution outright to get power in one sweep
-declined after Cold War

3) Election day vote-fraud
-declined after Cold War

4) Promissory Coups
frame the one who overthrew elected government as a defender of democracy and promises to hold elections and restore democracy ASAP
-went up after Cold War

5) Executive Aggrandizement
elected executive weakens checks on executive power, one by one
-went up after Cold War

6) Strategic Election Manipulation
hampering media access, keeping opposition candidates off the ballet, hampering voter registration, harrassing opponents in order for incumbent to win
-happens long before polling day
-common after cold war

POL 103 (2 decks)

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