political parties Flashcards
what is a political party
A political party is an organisation which consists of a group of people with similar ideas about how they think the country should be run.
what do major political parties aim to do
they aim to win elections and to form government
what do minor political parties aim to do
Minor parties seek to influence government through the parliament, form coalition government with a major party, or gain the ‘balance of power’.
what is a coalition and provide an example
a coalition is when two parties join forces for them to get elected to parliament
The Liberal Party and the Nationals have traditionally joined in a coalition (The LNP) to form government.
which party forms the government
The party which has the support of the majority of Members of the House of Representatives forms the government.
what are the steps of becoming a prime minister
you must be elected into parliament
your party must form government
your party members should elect you to be their leader
which party forms the opposition
the party with the second largest number of members in parliament will become the opposition
what are the major political parties in the house of reps
The Australian Labor Party (since 1901)
The Liberal Party of Australia (since 1944)
The Nationals (since 1920)
The Greens (since 1972)
what are minor parties
Minor parties only have a small number of members elected to Parliament.
list examples of minor parties
centre alliance
Pauline Hanson’s one nation
united australia party
the new liberals
australian party
define a lobby group
There are many political organisations which are not political parties.
These are often called lobby groups or pressure groups.
what do lobby groups try to do
They do not seek to be elected into parliament.
Instead, they seek to:
Shift public opinion
Put political pressure on politicians to support their cause.
Influence voters at election time.
where are minor parties better represented in
the senate
what are the groups of minor parties and independents called
the cross benchers
