test 2 Flashcards
Horizontal accountability
State institutions holding each other accountable (checks and balances)
Vertical accountability
individuals and groups in society holding state institutions accountable
Coalition government
at least 2 parties negotiate agreement to rule together, can be more difficult to make laws/rule. Vote of no confidence (remove prime minister)
Code law
follow law as written, little interpretation
cohabitation
president and pm from different parties
common law
judges make decisions based on their understanding of the law and adhere to past case precedents
consensus democracy
multiparty executives in coalition government, rigid constitutions not easily amended
majoritarian democracy
concentrate power in single place and ffice, single-party rules and dominates
devolution
partial decentralization of power from central government to subunits (states), subunits power being dependent on central government
Federal systems
central gov shares constitutional sovereignty and power with subunits (states)
symmetrical federal system
states have same relationship with and rights in relation to national government
asymmetrical federal system
some different states have different relationships with and rights in relation to national government
head of government
executive power in a state - president/prime minister
head of state
representative of a country authorized to speak on behalf and represent - monarch/president
institutionalization
degree which gov processes and procedures are established, predictable, and routinized. legitimacy is necessary. judiciary is as strong as institution
judicial independence
judges can decide cases as they see fit without outside influence. protects from corruption, bribes
judicial review
decides if law is abiding to constitution, gives court veto power. Decentralized (everyday cases and can decide constitutional issues at any leveL) and concrete (only someone who has been negatively affected by law can initiate case)
legislative oversight
occurs when members of legislature oversee the bureaucracy
parliamentarism
combines executive and leg branch, PM, member of parliament (elected to parliament), vote of no confidence to remove PM, cabinet is appointed by PM but MP involved
Presidentialism
Head of state and government are one
Coalition presidentialism
form coalitions within legislature to pass legislation when many parties present, close to PM than president
Semipresidentialism
splits power between president and PM. president elected by people, PM is coalition/majority party leader in parliament. Cohabitation possible. Important to have clear duties
political appointees
officials who serve at pleasure of exec and assigned to oversee parts of bureaucracy
principal-agent problem
a principal hires an agent to perform a task but agent’s self-interest does not necessarily align with the principal’s so the agent may not carry out the task as assigned.
Prime minister
head of gov, can be voted out by MP, PM can dissolve parliament and call for new elections
member of parliament
elected member of leg in parliament
new public management (NPM)
argues to privatize government services to create competition among agencies to stimulate market, focus on consumer satisfaction, flatten administrative hierarchies
rent-seeking
act of growing one’s existing wealth without creating new wealth, harms rest of society
unitary systems
central gov has sole constitutional sovereignty and power
vote of no confidence
vote by parliament to remove gov from power (PM and cabinet). common in coalition gov
closed-list proportional representation
ranked PR for voting party (top candidates appointed). If party wins 10 seats in leg, top 10 candidates within party are appointed.
open-list proportional representation
individual candidates run, top candidates win
collective action problem
people don’t believe choices make a difference, nothing changes, elites gain control over time (voting)
dominant party system
one party popular enough to win every election despite other parties being present
duverger’s law
single member district systems eliminate small parties for 2 party systems, eventually leads to 2-party
electoral systems
formal legal mechanisms that translates votes into control over politics
electoral systems
formal legal mechanisms that translates votes into control over politics
first-past-the-post (FPTP)
single member district system where candidate with plurality of votes win
interest-group pluralism
system where many groups exist to represent particular interests and gov is neutral among them.
mixed or semiproportional systems
combines single-member district representation with overall proportionality in allocation of legislative seats to party. Individual candidates not elected but appointed within party. mixed SMD and PR seats
multiparty systems
more than 2 parties can realistically win election (can be 2 dominant parties that form coalitions with smaller parties)
neocorporatism/societal corporatism
corporatism that evolves on own rather than being mandated by state (fascism). strong peak association represent major interest in society by bringing together local groups, government working closely with them (not fascism)
patronage-based mobilization
exchange of material benefits for political support (dark money), common in economically weak societies
peak associations
organizations that bring together interest groups in a particular sector to influence and negotiate agreements with state
plurality
receives most votes but not necessarily a majority
populist mobilization
us vs them rhetoric. personalist leader appealing to voters directly, usually threatening existing institutions, parties, elites
programmatic mobilization
appealing to citizens on bases of ideas, usually economic or cultural, less loyalty to party thus lessens unity
proportional representation
seats appointed in leg on proportional basis so party representation is equal to share of vote. parties that get certain % are guaranteed seats, common in coalition gov.
single-member district
each geographic district elects single rep (pro: guaranteed representation for districts. con: votes wasted since not representative of majority, suppresses minority voices
social capital
social networks and norms of reciprocity that are important for strong civil society
state corporatism
controls peak associations, common in fascist regimes
virtual representation
voters’ views are represented indirectly in leg by candidates in their chosen party who were elected in other districts (not yours)
contentious politics
political activity beyond institutional bounds, involving protests, petitions, revolution. not necessarily threatening to regime but can threaten policies, laws, etc.
civil war
2 or more armed groups fighting for control of state. horizontal (across elites) or vertical (elites and community) ties for support. integrated (hor and vert) work best. ethnicity can be powerful tie.
political opportunity structure
how open a regime is to influence from social movements. Movementization is when parties are easily influences, more likely to champion social movement demands
political revolution
fundamental transformation of an existing regime, carried out by social movement or armed group
political violence
use of force by nonstate actors for political ends (NOT war, not done by government). hard to get social support, often result of repression by regime (authoritarianism)
relative deprivation
belief that someone/group is not getting what they deserve, others are getting more/taking it from them
security dilemma
two groups feel they are vulnerable, not protected by state, fear of being attack leads to attack
social movements
part of civil society, organized group seeking major socioeconomic or political changes, often from left representing marginalized groups
social revolution
fundamental transformation of regime AND social structure, can be violent
terrorism
political violence deliberately targeting civilians or noncombatants in order to influence behavior and actions of targeted people and governments, goal is fear. groups often motivated by historical humiliation, fear.
totalitarianism
everything within the state, nothing outside the state, nothing against the state. state controls all aspects of society and eliminates all vestiges of civil society
authoritarianism
has supreme leader, strong central power to preserve political status quo, enforcement of strict obedience to authority at expense of personal freedom
military regime
military officers control power
one-party regime
single party gains power, systematically eliminates all opposition. usually after independence from colonialism
theocratic regime
divine authority, ruled by religious authorities (islamic republic)
personalist regime
central leader dominates state, eliminates opposition, weakens state institutions, veil of bureaucracy
semi-authoritarian/electoral authoratarianism
combines democratic and authoritarian elements, electoral-authoritarian. monitored dissent, ruling party remains in power, flawed elections
absolute monarchy/absolutism
single monarch claiming total control. 3 elements for external sovereignty - centralized bureaucracy, systematic taxation, policies encourage economic development
dictator’s dilemma
dictator fears that they are constantly being threatened, employ too many efforts to counteract. unsure of how much support dictator has because of ruler’s repression that creates fear
supreme leader
executive power with few limits, supported by group of elites, rely on military to maintain control, questionable line of succession
