Hass politics and law 2026

democracy

a system of government where the power belongs to the people who exercise it though elected leaders.

3 countries considered democratic

Norwary, New Zealand, Sweden

3 countries considered undemocratic

North Korea, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia

3 features of a democratic country

free and fair elections, the rule of law, and the protection of basic human rights and freedom

3 features of a undemocratic counrty

No real choice, rigged political systems, no basic freedoms

separation of powers

the divsion of powers in a government no one person or group should have all the power

3 institutions that exercise these powers

legeslative, executive, judicary

legeslative

exercised by the parliment, the power to make laws, examples are house of representitives and the senate.

executive

exercied by the prime minister and ministry government, the power to administer laws made by the legeslative, examples are anthoney albenese and the ministers.

judicary

exercied by the courts and judges, the power is to hear and settle disputes about the law.

what is the importance for the seperation of powers

so that not all the power rests in one group or persons hands, if that did happen they could end up dictating the country

checks and balances

tools or processes that each power has to keep the other powers from acting beyond their powers

examples of checks and balances

courts can over turn execuitve desisions following a sucessful challenge. a judge can be removed by the parliment if they are not acting apporaptertly.

election

it is the process by which citizens choose canditates to represent them in parliment and form the government

parliment

the high law making body in a country made up of elected people who write change and vote on laws

what are the purposes of elections

we have elections so that we can peacefully change the government.

franchise

the right to vote in public elections

who is able to vote in federal elections

an australian citizen aged 18 or over

how often are federal elections held

every 3 years

how often are state elections held

every 4 years

member of parliment and who do they represent

they are an elected person who represents a local area, helps make laws and speaks for the public in government

senator and who do they represent

they are a member of an upper legeslative house who represents a state or territory, debates and votes on laws and checks governments actions.

what is first past the post and what are positives and negatives

where you vote for one person and the winner is the person with the most votes.

Positives:

easy to understand

dosent cost much

quick to count the votes and work out who has won

negetives:

representitves can get elected with small amounts of public support the only thing that matters is that they got more votes than the others.

encourages tatical voting

what is Preferential voting and what are positives and negatives

when voters put numbers against canditates where one being the most wanted and so on

positives:

ensures that a person with the absolute majority can win

ensures that voters can support minor parties

ensures stability in parlimentry process

negetives:

complicated to administer and count

produce highler level of informal voting

voters are forced to express a preference for candidates they do not wish to support

which voting system is used in federal elections

preferential voting is used in federal elections

federilisim

It is a federal system where power and the responsibility to govern is divided between a central (federal) government and a number of regional (state) governments.

unitary governments

it is a system where one centeral national authority holds all the main governing power. local or reginal offices exist only of centeral governments creates them and they can only use powers that the center allows.

differences between federal governments and unitary governments

in federal system the power is shared between centeral government and states, in unitary system all the power rests in with the centeral government.

exclusive powers

powers that only the commonwealth (centeral) government use

concurrect powers

powers that both the commonwealth and states use

residual powers

powers that only the states use things that have not been mentioned in the constitution

federal governments resposibilites

national and international issues that effect all australias, national defence, foreign affeirs, immigration, trade, currency

state government resposibilites

makes laws and provides public services for people living within its borders

local government responsibilites

manage community level infastructure, public services and local regulations

purpose of section 51 in the constitution

it gives the commonwealth parliment the right to overrule all rules and regulations from all the seperate states

purpose of section 109 in the constitution

Section 109 of the Australian Constitution resolves conflicts between federal and state laws. It states that when a state law is inconsistent with a valid federal law, the federal law overrides the state law, making the conflicting part of the state law invalid.

why is north korea considered a non demoratic country

North Korea—officially named the Democratic People's Republic of Korea—is considered a non-democratic country because it is a totalitarian hereditary dictatorship ruled by a single family and one political party, with no free elections, no opposition parties, and severe human rights abuses

what is a threat to democracy

A threat to democracy is any action, condition, or systemic shift that weakens public trust, erodes institutional checks and balances, or undermines the principle of rule by the people. It can also lead to corruption

4 threats to australias democracy

media concentration and bias, political donations, lobbyists, artifitial intelegence

how is media concentration and bias a threat to australia democracy

Australia has one of the most concentrated media markets in the democratic world, dominated by a small number of private corporations like News Corp, Nine Entertainment, and Seven West Media. This heavy concentration and ideological bias pose structural risks to democratic health by narrowing public debate and weakening accountability

what are political donations

Political donations in Australia are funds, gifts-in-kind, or services provided to political parties, candidates, or associated entities to support their operations and election campaigns.

what are lobbyists

In Australia, lobbyists are people or companies paid to influence government decisions, laws, policies, or contracts on behalf of third-party clients

democoratic safeguard

Safeguarding democracy means protecting the core rules, rights, and systems that let people take part in fair government

3 examples of democratic safeguards

the separation of powers, the constitution, compulsury voting

how does the constituion safeguard democracies

The Australian Constitution safeguards democracy by establishing a system of representative and responsible government, separating federal powers into three distinct branches, dividing power between national and state governments, and empowering an independent judiciary to uphold the rule of law

two key roles of the high court

One role is to hear and determine appeals from all courts. Another role is to interpret the words in the constitution to uphold the separation of powers.

constitutional disput

A constitutional dispute in Australia involves disagreements over the meaning or power limits of the Australian Constitution, usually settled by the High Court of Australia.

consitutional interpertation

Constitutional interpretation in Australia is the process by which the High Court of Australia determines the meaning and application of the Australian Constitution

what is the high courts role in interpritating the constitution

The High Court of Australia is the ultimate guardian and interpreter of the Australian Constitution. It reviews laws to ensure they do not break constitutional rules, settles power limits between the federal government and states, and protects democratic rights when real legal disputes arise

With reference to at least two specific case studies, explain in detail how the High Court of Australia safeguards Australia's democracy.

The High Court of Australia safeguards Australia's democracy by acting as an independent constitutional umpire, ensuring that the federal and state parliaments do not exceed their powers or pass laws that quietly erode core democratic rights, such as the right to vote and political free speech, which are embedded in the structure of the Australian Constitution.