POLS EXAM 2

What are the dangers and flaws of presidential democracy according to both Carey and Linz? Carey, John. "Did Trump prove that government with presidents just don't work?." The Washington Post (February 2021).

"When the legislature and the president can each claim an electoral mandate, intractable differences might tempt one or the other to 'knock on the barracks door' in search of military allies"

Presidential Democracy

- President picks cabinet from outside the legislature - Separation of powers - 3 branches - origin = separate elections for presidential and legislature - survival = once president is elected, can only be removed before end of term under extraordinary circumstances (illegal act) ex: US, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia

Parliamentary Democracy

- Prime Minister - fusion of powers - origin = legislature decides who controls the executive branch - Prime Minister can be removed if a majority in legislature does not support a "vote of no confidence" in his/her gov - PM's cabinet composed of senior members of PMs party in the legislature - executive and legislative branches have neither separation of origin nor separation of survival - voters directly elect PM -> legislators elect the chief executive -> prime minister appoints a cabinet ex: UK, Germany, Denmark

Semi-Presidential Democracy

- separation of origin but not separation of survival - executive power is shared between a prime minister and president (dual executive) - president can also dismiss the PM and in some cases even call early legislative elections - PM and cabinet is accountable to the parliamentary majority - vote of no confidence Ex: France, Australia

Generally, what are the 9 theoretical debates between parliamentary and presidential democracy? Gerring, John, Strom C. Thacker, and Carola Moreno. Are parliamentary systems better?." Comparative political studies 42, no. 3 (2009): 327-359.

1. Party organization 2. Interest Organization 3. Bureaucratic organization 4. Transparency, presumably a key element of democratic accountability - Presidentialism: direct vote for the chief executive leads to a transparent relationship between elections and electoral outcomes - Parliamentarism: post election coalition negotiations affect only those circumstances in which no single party is able to gain a majority of the legislature 5. Information. - Presidentialism: division of power between branches creates information-rich environment - Parliamentarism: more information does not always lead to better governance 6. Electoral accountability. - Presidentialism: greater accountability at the local level - Parliamentarism: greater accountability at the national level 7. Political change. - Presidentialism: virtues of political stability - Parliamentarism: emphasize problem of the status quo - adapt to changing demands and changing circumstances 8. Institutionalization - Presidentialism: fosters more personalized form of political behavior in which presidents and leaders all enjoy a degree of independence - Parliamentarism: fosters highly predictable, institutionalized form of politics and policy making in which participants are part of the establishment 9. Contestation and consensus - Presidentialism: conflict is endemic and continual - parties engage in policy making at the same time - Parliamentarism: temporarily monopolized by a single party of coalition - parties take turns engaging in policy making

4. In an electoral district in which 20 seats are awarded to parties in proportion to their vote share, how many parties will probably become viable competitors for those seats? A. 21 B. 5 C. 20 D. 2

A. 21

8. Non-democratic regimes include all the following types EXCEPT: A. Consensus systems B. Theocracies C. Single-party rule D. Monarchies

A. Consensus systems

3. A democratic system that uses multi-member districts, proportional representation, and a federalized system of government is an example of: A. Personalist autocracy B. Consensus democracy C. Majoritarian democracy D. Single-party rule

B. Consensus democracy

6. In recent years, China has been taking advantage of what new technologies to consolidate state power? A. New banking technologies B. New surveillance technologies C. New mining technologies D. New manufacturing technologies

B. New surveillance technologies

7. Russian President Vladimir Putin _____________. A. Has low public support B. Has no public support C. High public support D. None of the above

C. High public support

2. Which of the following was a key reform introduced under Deng Xiaoping's leadership in China? A. Cultural Revolution B. Introduction of "Red Guard" C. Special economic zones D. Purging CCP elites of corruption

C. Special economic zones

5. Charles III is currently: A. representing a district in the House of Commons B. the head of the UK government C. the head of state D. all of the above

C. The head of state

1. According to Timothy Frye (2021), what groups pose a dual threat Putin's regime? A. The liberals and the criminals B. The Leninists and the Maoists C. The businessmen and the revolutionaries D. The masses and the inner circle elites

D. The masses and the inner circle elites

Cult of Personality

In communist and other systems, the excessive adulation of a single leader Ex: Mao Zedong (all education, music, literature, culture centered around studying Mao Thought - "The Little Red Book", etc.)

Tiananmen Square Protests

Student led demonstrations in Beijing during 1989 against the single part Communist rule. The protests were forcibly suppressed after the government declared martial law. This became widely known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, in which troops with assault rifles and tanks killed several hundred demonstrators trying to block the military's advance to the square.

Consensus Democracy

a democratic system with multiparty executives in a coalition government, executive legislative balance, bicameral (having 2 branches or chambers) legislatures, and rigid constitutions that are not easily amended

Single-Party Regime

a single political party dominates all government institutions and restricts political competition to maintain itself in power

Kleptocracy

a state where corruption is so institutionalized that politicians and bureaucrats siphon off a huge percentage of a country's wealth

Constitutional Monarchy

a system of government in which a monarch shares power with a constitutionally organized government

Authoritarian Regime

a system of government in which the state exercises broad control over the lives of its citizens - do not give their citizens civil liberties or political rights; no turnover in power of the executive

Majoritarian Democracy

a type of democratic system that concentrates power more tightly in a single-party executive with executive dominance over the legislature, a single legislative branch, and constitutions that can be easily amended

Reform Era 1978-1989

economic reforms under Deng Xiaoping - China grew 9% on average, more than 800 million people lifted themselves out of poverty

Electoral Authoritarianism

facade of democracy providing some space for political opposition, independent media, social organizations that do not seriously criticize or challenge the regime

Coalition Government

form of government in which political parties cooperate to form a government

Dictatorship

government with a complete ruler with absolute authority without effective constitutional limitations

Prime Minister

head of parliamentary government

Lava Jato

largest corruption case in the world - 200+ convictions and millions of dollars in fines; implicated the majority of the country's politicians and prominent political figures; Brazilian construction companies offered kickbacks to public contracts; political polarization - partisan bias in prosecution

Proportional Representation System

multiple winners based on the percentage of voters that candidates or parties receive; goal is to produce a proportional translation of votes into seats; use either a quota or a divisor to determine who is elected in each district - the number of votes needed; votes count more ex: Czech Republic, Serbia, Sweden, Colombia

Vote of No Confidence

parliamentary vote which, if successful, terminates the prime minister's appointment

European Union

partnership between 27 European countries, known as Member States;

Plurality Systems

person with more votes than anyone else gets elected

Populism

political approach that strives to appeal to ordinary people who feel their concerns are disregarded by the established elite groups

Cultural Revolution

power struggle, ideological battle, and mass campaign to transform culture in china during time of Mao; he instructed school and university students to destroy "bourgeois culture"; students formed radical Red Guards groups to criticize and persecute those in power; factional struggles grew increasingly violent; many top leaders purged or killed

Jair Bolsonaro

president of Brazil; former military captain; racist, misogynistic, homophobic, undemocratic views; misinformation played role in boosting him into presidency; advocated for conservation social issues and fighting crime

Xi Jinping

president of china; head of the Party and the head of the state; holds top 3 offices: general secretary (head of CCP), president of China, and chairman of the party's Central Military of Commission (commander in chief); removed term limits (can now rule indefinitely); ablousiehd mandatory retirement of party leaders at 68; purged rival party leaders; common prosperity campaign - bolster social equality and reduce economic inequality; assertive foreign policy

Legislative Responsibility

refers to a situation in which a legislative majority has the constitutional power- a vote of no confidence- to remove a government from office without cause - presidential democracies have no legislative responsibility - parliamentary and semi-presidential democracies do have legislative responsibility

Electoral System

set of rules for casting, counting votes, and deciding the outcome of an election; regulate the competition between candidates or parties; 3 main electoral systems = 1. majoritarian, 2. proportional, 3. mixed

What are some of the ways that Carey suggests could "fix" the troubles of American presidential democracy? Carey, John. "Did Trump prove that government with presidents just don't work?." The Washington Post (February 2021).

shifting away from the system of single-winner districts

Civil Society

society created when citizens are allowed to organize and express their views publicly as they engage in an open debate about public policy

What were the political factors that influenced the Brexit vote? Laurence Whitehead, "The Hard Truths of Brexit," Journal of Democracy, 31 (April 2020), pp. 81-95.

sovereignty, immigration, economy, and anti-establishment politics

Special Economic Zones

subject to different economic regulations - allow foreign investment (soars as foreign investors are given access to Chinese markets)

Mao Zedong

takes control post-chines civil war; killed all birds to help harvest because birds eat grain - bugs came and ate all crops (even less food); Great Leap Forward - worst famine in world history (30 million people died); worshipped - all education, music, literature, culture centered around studying Mao thought; referred to as the Great Helmsman "the little red book"

Fixed Terms

terms of office that have a definite length of time, e.g., two years for a member of the House.

Minority Government

the governmental parties do not together command a majority of legislative seats; can only exist as long as the opposition chooses not to bring it down; must always have an implicit majority in the legislature

District Magnitude

the number of representatives elected in a district (the size of the electoral district)

House of Lords

the part of the parliament in Britain whose members have not been elected; reviews and amends bills that have been approved by House of Commons - cannot prevent bills from passing into law

House of Commons

the part of the parliamentary in Britain or Canada whose members are elected - Tories party is the largest party in it (80 seat majority)

Nativism

the policy of protecting the interests of native-born or established inhabitants against those of immigrants

Majority Run-Off System

voters cast a single vote in a single member district; a single winner but they must get 50% +1 of the votes; there is a run-off between the top two candidates if nobody gets a majority in the first round

Alternative Vote System

voters rank order the candidates; candidate who receives an absolute majority (50% +1) if the first choice is elected; if no candidate wins absolute majority - candidate with the fewest first choice votes is eliminated; votes of the eliminated candidate are reallocated to the second choice preference; repeat until one candidate has an absolute majority of the valid votes remaining Ex: Australian legislative elections