AP comparative Government

1. AP comparative Government Chapter 6: Democratic Regimes

2. Defining Democracy

3. Democracy • Origin of the term: • Demos, “the common people” • Kratia, “power” or “rule” • Modern definition: • Political power exercised directly or indirectly by the people

4. Not All Democracies Are “Good” Ones • Illiberal democracies • Have election but undermine key democratic elements • Liberal democracies • Promote participation, competition, and liberty, and emphasize individual freedom and civil rights.

5. Origins of Democracy

6. A History of Democracy • Ancient Greece (Athens): a small community of direct democracy • Few fixed institutions • Rome: Republicanism • Separation of powers, and elected officials • England: Magna Carta (1215) • Limits power of monarchy and establishes rights • Taxes and borrowing controlled by parliament

7. Contemporary democratization

8. Possible Explanations for Democratization • Modernization • Elites • Civil Society • International relations • Political culture

9. Modernization • As societies modernize (economically), • A middle class emerges. • Population becomes wealthier, better educated, and unionized • Old traditions of authority and hierarchy weaken. • New values (tolerance, gender equality) emerge. • Evaluating this theory: • The evidence: Most democracies are wealthy countries. • The problem: There are many examples of countries that have modernized without democratizing, and vice versa.

10. Elites • Main idea: Distributions of wealth and power matter. • When wealth is concentrated in state power, those in power are unlikely to give up control of the state. • Elites may choose to support democracy if it • Means they can keep their wealth (South Africa). • Wins them more international support (Taiwan). • Protects their assets from seizure (Chile).

11. society • Main idea: The public will be better able to push for reform if civil society is stronger • Civil society: organized life outside of state control • Why civil society matters: • Civil society groups pushed for the end of communism in Eastern Europe, and regime change in the “Arab Spring.” • China limits environmental or religious groups, even when they are not explicitly political

12. International relations • Main idea: International actors can play a direct or indirect role in promoting democracy. • Examples: • Japan and Germany: post-WWII occupation • Eastern Europe: European Union (EU) pressures (including foreign investment and trade incentives) • Tunisia and Egypt: transmission of ideas through education, media, and nongovernmental organizations (NG)s)

13. Political culture • The debate: • Western-style values are required for democracy to emerge. • Individualism, secularism, gender equality • The evidence: Democracy first emerged in Western Europe and North America. • Culture shapes democracy once it emerges. • The evidence: Every region of the world now has at least one democracy.

14. Institutions of the Democratic State

15. The three branches of government

16. Two distinct roles • Head of state • Symbolic, embodiment of the people • Sometimes conducts international affairs • Head of government • Runs the state and leads the government • Makes national policies • Directs officers and ministers The executive The branch of government that carries out laws and policies of the state

17. The Executive: Variation between Countries • Countries either combine or divide the roles of head of state and head of government. • Countries that divide the role: The United Kingdom, Germany • Countries that combine the role: The United States, South Africa

18. Legislatures may be: • Unicameral • Common in small, homogenous countries • Bicameral • Common in larger, more diverse countries • Often related to federalism • Houses may be elected using different rules The legislature The branch of government that makes laws

19. Comparing Legislatures Unicameral Legislatures • Denmark • Norway • Tunisia • Greece • New Zealand • Estonia • Nebraska state leglislature Bicameral Legislatures • United Kingdom • United States • Germany • Belgium • Brazil • India • South Africa

20. Legislators may Be chosen by: • Direct election • United States (House and Senate) • France (Assembly) • Germany (Bundestag) • United Kingdom (Commons) • Indirect election • France (Senate) • Germany (Bundesrat) • Heredity/appointment • United Kingdom (House of Lords)

21. In democracies, courts • Interpret applications of laws. • Judge criminal complaints • Rule on civil suits • Have a hierarchy • The losers in a case can usually appeal to a higher court. The Judiciary The branch of government that maintains and upholds the rule of law Rule of law: All individuals and groups, including those in government, are subject to the law irrespective of their power or authority

22. The Power of Judicial Review • 90 percent of democracies have a constitutional court • Constitutional courts have judicial review (the power to decide whether laws and policies violate the constitution.) • Types of judicial review • Abstract review: Political leaders can refer questions to a court, often before laws are passed. • Example: French Constitutional Council • Concrete review: Citizens use court cases to challenge a law after its passage • Example: U.S. Supreme Court

23. Models of democracy: Parliamentary, Presidential, and Semi- Presidential Systems

24. How do the branches of government relate to one another? Three potential models: • Parliamentary systems • Legislative and executive branches are fused • Presidential systems • Separation of power between executive and legislature • Semi-presidential systems • A hybrid system with two executives

25. Comparing Parliamentary and Presidential systems, part 1

26. Comparing Parliamentary and Presidential systems, part 2

27. Comparing Parliamentary and Presidential systems, part 3

28. Semi-Presidential systems: The Hybrid, Part 1

29. Semi-Presidential systems: The Hybrid, Part 2

30. Semi-Presidential systems: The Hybrid, Part 3

31. Parliamentary, Presidential, and Semi-Presidential Systems: Benefits and drawbacks

32. Parliamentary, Presidential, and semi-presidential systems: cost and benefits

33. Political parties

34. Political parties • Parties promote… • Participation • Competition • Governance and policy making • accountability • Some countries have two parties, others have more • Party systems shaped by electoral systems

35. Electoral systems

36. How do voters choose their representatives? • We might compare: • Do they elect candidates, parties, or both? • How many people represent each constituency? • District magnitude • How do they calculate the winner or winners? Electoral Systems

37. Single-Member District (SMD) Systems

38. SMD System: United Kingdom

39. Multimember District (MMD) Systems

40. MMD System: South Africa

41. PR Systems in Comparison The Netherlands South Africa 400 members of parliament 2 PR Lists National list – 200 members Regional list – 9 districts 4-43 members District magnitude = 200 • 150 members of parliament • 1 national list • All 150 members • District magnitude = 150

42. Mixed systems in comparison Mexico Germany 598+ members of parliament Mixed member proportional system SMD list: 299 members 299+ from 1 nationwide, PR constituency District magnitude=1 and 299+ • 500 members of parliament • Parallel voting • SMD list: 300 candidates • 200 from 1 nationwide, PR constituency • District magnitude = 1 and 200

43. A Rare System: Preferential Voting • Voters rank-order candidates • Low-ranking candidates are eliminated • Votes are redistributed to the voter’s second choice • Variants: • Single transferable vote (STV) • MMD • Alternative voting (AV) • SMD • “Instant runoff”

44. Advantages and disadvantages Majority/plurality systems Proportional representation More and smaller parties More representative Stronger party discipline and ideological branding Risk of fragmentation • Fewer and larger parties • Clear mandates • Political accountability • Less representative • Disproportional results

45. Referendum and Initiative

46. Referenda and Initiatives • Both are forms of direct democracy • Defined: • Referendum: National vote called by a government to address a specific proposal, often a change to a constitution • Initiative: A national vote called by members of the public to address a specific proposal

47. Civil Rights and Civil Liberties

48. Rights vs. Liberties • Created by the constitution and/or political regime • Civil rights: rights regarding equality • Civil Liberties: rights regarding freedom • Differences across states • Specificity of constitutional protections • Actions by courts to defend rights and liberties • Ideas about central role of state

49. Democracy Index