US vs Australia electoral processes Flashcards
America’s political system
Representative democracy and a republic organised as a federation
Australia’s political system
Washminster hybrid
Composition of executive in the US and Australia
US- President, vice president, cabinet secretaries
Aus- King/Governor general, PM and deputy PM, cabinet
Role of the executive in the US and Australia
US and Aus- Administers the law, requests/introduces new laws on major policy areas
What does the executive branch represent in the US and Aus
US- the people
Aus- will of parliament
Method of appointment in the executive branch in the US and Aus
US- president chosen through electoral college, ministers appointed by president and then voted on by the senate
Aus- Drawn from parliament, gov is indirectly elected, GG appoints ministers
Composition of the legislative branch in the US and Aus
Both bicameral- ‘peoples house’ and ‘states’ house’
Role of the legislative in the US and Aus
Both create, scrutinise and approve laws
What does the legislative represent in the US and Aus
Both represent the will of the people
How are people appointed as part of the legislative branch in the US and Aus
Both directly elected by the people
Two houses of the US Congress
‘The house’ and the senate
How many members are in ‘the house’, what is the term length and requirements to become a member
435, 2 years, must be 25+ years old, US citizen for 7+ years
How many members are in the US’s senate, what is the length of the terms and requirements to be a member
100 members, 6 years, must be 30+ years old, US citizen for 9+ years, resident of the state they are representing
Composition of the judiciary in the US and Aus
Both constitutional/high court
Role of the judiciary in the US and Aus
US- Act as a check on the powers of both the legislature and executive
Uphold law, constitution and bill of rights
Aus- same except don’t uphold bill of rights (don’t have them)
What does the judiciary represent in the US and Aus
Both represent rule of law
Method of appointment into the judiciary in the US and Aus
US- through the president and senate
Aus- GG on advice from the PM
What are primaries
run by State, when party members vote for the best candidate that will represent them in the general election (mini-election)
What are caucuses
run by parties, when party members select the best candidate through discussions and votes (more of a meeting)
Who can vote in primaries and caucuses
Citizens but can only vote for the party they are a member of
Why do some drop out of primaries/caucuses
they slowly happen nationally meaning that some candidates eventually drop out due to limited funds
What happens at national conventions
presidential nominee is selected and they choose their running mate
Who do people vote for in US elections
People vote for electors who then go to Washington to vote for their party (can be faithless voters that vote for opposite party)
How many electors are there and why?
There are 538 electors (need 270 to win) because it is equal to the total voting membership of the US congress- 435 representatives, 100 senators and 3 electors from the District of Columbia
How are electors delegated to states
Each state has a different number of electors depending on population
Safe state
states that have a long history of voting for a particular party
Swing state
states that switch/teeter between parties
Who could vote in the US in 1789
1789- Only white, male property owners could vote (only 6% of US population)
Universal suffrage
Happened in 1830, meant that you no longer had to own property to vote but it was still restricted to white men
When did women win the right to vote in the US
1920
Voting Rights Act
1965, section 5 meant that states with a history of racist legislation couldn’t make laws that infringe on POC without federal governments permission which applied to states that had imposed unfair literacy tests, or if less than 50% of the voting age population was registered and/or didn’t vote in the presidential election
Changes to the 26th amendment
1971, meant that all US citizens 18+ could vote
What happened in 2013
Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act was found unconstitutional (4-5 votes) giving states the power to make it harder for minorities to vote (E.g- Allowed voter ID laws (need photo ID), NC eliminated 7 days of early voting, exact match law in 2017 prevented 53,000 people from voting 70% of which were African American, polling place closures- Randolph County (Georgia) tried to close 7/9 polling booths but after a lawsuit they stayed open)
Who argued against the Voting Rights Act
Shelby County (Tennesse) argued that the requirements were burdensome and ‘needlessly’ aggressive as they were based on outdated data making it unconstitutional- undermined right to self-govern
