week 4 - legislatures and gov. in systems Flashcards
legislature
(usually) elected body composed of several members
some examples of what the legislature itself is called
“The Legislature,” “Congress,” “Parliament,” “The Assembly,”
what functions do legislature serve
Policymaking
Representing the people
Oversight
Debating
legislature policymaking
The most important power; the introduction of new legislation.
2 things legislatures can do with legislation
veto and delay legislation
unicameralism
means one house; common in smaller countries
bicameralism
means two houses; two chambers existed to serve the interests of different economic classes.
In federal countries, the upper house often represents the interests of subunits.
bicameralism and policymaking
policymaking is usually slower, as the upper house places an additional check on legislation. this is especially true where the upper chamber is quite powerful.
party discipline
the ability of a party to get legislators to support the policies of the leadership.
what happens when party discipline is high
passing legislation is easier
representation
to give a voice to the people
types of representation
delegates and trustees
delegates
communicate the wishes of their constituents in the legislature.
which type of representation did hobbes prefer
delegates; because it constrains the “vanity” of elected officials
trustee
use their intellect and reasoning skills to make the decisions best for their constituents, without necessarily considering constituents’ wishes.
what did the two philosophists think about the trustee model
Burke thought the representative should not have to sacrifice “his unbiased opinion, his mature judgment” to constituents.
Madison reasoned that representatives deliberate to reach the common good, which is more productive than simply reflecting the will of the people.
types of oversight
general and executive
what does debating do in legislatures
- brings a diversity of opinions into the policymaking process.
- can affect and inform public opinion.
- can promote compromise
general oversight
legislature can conduct inquiries and form investigative committees
question time in a parliament
the prime minister is called upon roughly weekly to defend his or her policies and actions.
what does least MWC mean
less surplus seats meaning the other party would be more likely to be coalition partners with a party that has less seats.
executive oversight
In presidential systems, the legislature can impeach and ultimately remove the executive
In parliamentary systems, the legislature can dismiss the executive with a vote of no confidence
what is the amount of members the U.S lower house has frozen their numbers to
435 members
what do bigger legislatures imply
better representation
more salaries to pay
more elections to hold
more people needed to attain a majority
government
the country’s central political executive which includes a chief executive and top officials.
factors of government in presidential systems
- The government is the president and the cabinet.
- The president is the chief executive.
- The president appoints cabinet members, the highest-ranking government officials (usually with legislative consent) - they are not elected.
- The cabinet members can be from any political party and the president will generally select people from thier own party
factors of governments in parliamentary system
- The government is the prime minister and the cabinet
- The prime minister is the chief executive.
- The prime minister appoints cabinet members who are generally members of the legislature - they generally must be elected before joining the cabinet.
government types in parliamentary system
single party majority government
majority coalition government
minority government
majority coalition government
A group of two or more parties controls the legislative majority.
minority government
No party or group of parties controls the legislative party (usually quite fragile and don’t last long as they can lose the vote of no confidence).
single party majority government
A single party controls the legislative majority
why does government formation in parliamentary systems matter
Government needs the support of the legislative majority.
If no single party has a majority of seats, parties may try to form a coalition government.
what are the goal of parties in parliamentary systems
office and policy seeking
policy seeking
A party that wants to shape policy and get their preferred policy passed; it will want ideologically similar parties
office seeking
A party interested in the benefits of office wants as many cabinet positions as possible.
what would an office seeking party do in order to get as many cabinet positions as possible
they will form a minimal winning coalition (MWC) - which is a coalition with the fewest members that also controls the legislative majority (often in order to survive a no confidence).
how does the type of government affect its survival
the length of time a government survives is dependent on the composition.
the survival of single and minority party governments
Single party governments often last a long time.
Minority Party governments often die quickly – due to a vote of no confidence.
executives in semi-presidential systems
The president – who generally has the most power
The prime minister – who leads the parliamentary majority as usual.
what are some factors of governments in semi presidential systems
- Sometimes, the president has to appoint the prime minister who could be from any party
- The president is popularly elected, independent from the legislature
- The cabinet serves under the prime minister and can be dismissed by the legislature, like in the parliamentary system.
examples of countries in semi-presidential systems
France, Portugal, some countries are mostly African countries colonized by the French and some clusters of central and eastern European countries.
