representation Flashcards
what is representation
elected officials who act on voters’ behalf
what do representatives do
synthesize diffuse preferences, prioritize particular dimensions, establish expertise, comprimise to create law
what is the executive
core of people who executes the governments will - president, prime minister, cabinet
what is the legislature
body who creates law - speaker, parliament, senators
what is the electoral regime
how votes translate into power - polling place and precincts
what is the judiciary regime
system of legal courts for mediation and arbitration- constitutional courts and lawyers
sub nation regime
local units of government - provinces, us states, cities, towns
why is voter preferences multidimensional
hard to coherently hold a lot of preferences that are informed
how can you achieve representation
robust political competition, accountability through good media, particular electoral systems, multi party/candidate elections
challenges for representation
absent preferences, tyranny of the majority, dynamic representation and preference strength vs breadth
variation in executive authority
appointment and composition
non coalitional
executive derived from one party
variation in legislature composition
number of chambers, power of chambers, appointment to chamber
representativeness calculation
of seats divided by # of votes (the higher the number, the more representative)
forms of inclusive representation
legislative quotas and bifurcated systems
