Party Systems Flashcards
What is a 1 party system?
Only 1 party is allowed to operate freely
Features of a one party system
Only 1 party is allowed to operate, often associated with highly authoritarian countries.
Examples of a one party system
North Korea, China and Cuba
Negatives of a one party system
Undemocratic and highly authoritarian
Positives of a one party system
Stable, efficient, constant and consistent government with high levels of national
unity as a result.
What is a dominant party system?
The same party keeps on winning normally lasting at least 3 terms.
Examples of a dominant party system
Scotland, Japan
Features of a dominant party system?
Weak opposition thus leading to only 1 party having a realistic chance of winning and taking power.
Negatives of a dominant party system
They tend to become corrupt as they believe that even if they are a bad government they won’t be voted out due to weak opposition. Tend to become complacent. Lack of competition and accountability.
Positives of a dominant party system
Highly stable
What is a two party system?
Only 2 parties have a realistic chance of winning and forming a government.
Features of a two party system
2 main parties that win all the elections usually a right wing party and left wing party.
Examples of a two party system
USA
Positives of a two party system
Never changing (you know what to expect), easy to understand, stable
Negatives of a two party system
Lack of representation amongst minorities as there are only 2 parties with a chance of winning, Lack of competition leads to complacency
What is a two and a half party system?
A system whereby there are two main parties that contest elections but also a sizeable third party. Usually the third party holds the balance of power such as the Lib Dems in the 2010 election.
Examples of a two and a half party system
Canada. UK
Features of a two and a half party system
Two dominant parties which normally form governments, however theres either an emerging party in the country [New democratic party-Canada] or there is already a third party in the country [SNP-UK] who hold a certain amount of power.
Negatives of a two and a half party system
Sometimes the Third smaller party can have a large influence on the other parties if at an election the big parties only win with a minority government and have to form a coalition with the third party.
Negatives of a two and a half party system
Sometimes the Third smaller party can have a large influence on the other parties if at an election the big parties only win with a minority government and have to form a coalition with the third party.
Positives of a two and a half party system
More democratic then most systems due to more representation because of the third party.
What is a multi party system
A system in which several major and many lesser parties exist, seriously compete for, and actually win, public offices. The key here is that more than two parties have a realistic chance of being a part of the government and governments tend to be made up of coalitions
Features of a multi party system
Many parties fight for power, governments are normally coalitions and therefore mostly unstable unless in an election 1 party wins an out right majority.
Examples of a multi party system
Germany, Italy, most of Europe adopts this system
Negatives of a multi party system
Due to the large amount of parties there is risk of extremism creeping into the government, coalitions most of the time create an unstable government, parties from opposite sides of the political spectrum have to work with each other, acts/bills/policies take ages to come into law.
Positives of a multi party system
Representation of everyone, Although this system looks volatile it isn’t as many of the same parties will regularly find themselves in power again, some would argue this is the best democratic party system due to the amount of parties and therefore representation which is at going on.
