AP Comparative Government Key Terms

-Hairgrove class

Proportional Representation System

An electoral system in which citizens vote directly for parties which receive seats in the legislature in proportion to their votes. For example if a party gets 20% of the vote, they choose the representatives for 20% of the seats.

Political Socialization

The process of gaining your political beliefs and values through family, education, media, or government direction.

Sovereignty

The recognized authority to rule a territory or people without outside interference and a monopoly of coercion.

Political Participation

Formal activities include voting, running for office, and joining political parties that allow citizens to influence the government. Informal activities include protests, petitions, and social movements that operate outside official government structures.

Head of Government

The secondary executive responsible for running the government (with the cabinet and civil service) and overseeing the implementation of domestic and economic policies.

Civil Service

Non-partisan employees of government departments who implement the public policy and are part of a bureaucratic hierarchy that ultimately reports to a cabinet official and the head of government.

Political Culture

The collective attitudes, values, and beliefs of the citizenry and the norms of behavior in the political system. It sets expectations about the exercise of power to establish a balance between social order and individual liberty.

Social Cleavage

Divisions within a country based on elements of identity like ethnicity, language, culture, religion, region, age, and class that structure political competition and conflict.

Judicial Independence

The principle that courts and judges operate free from political interference, external pressure, or control by other branches of government, allowing them to interpret and apply laws impartially.

Cabinet

Appointed executive officials who head government departments, advise the chief executive, and implement policies passed by the legislature.

Unitary System

A political arrangement in which all sovereignty lies with the central government to rule over the regions. Power can be devolved to the regions but only by choice of the central government.

Corporatist Interest Group System

Where a few interest groups (single peak associations) have exclusive access or are controlled by the government to create government policy.

Illiberal Democracy

A country that follows the form of democracy with constitutional structure and elections but without protected civil liberties and political rights.

Political Ideology

A system of beliefs about humanity, society, and government. This goes beyond just policy; it includes the very nature and purpose of government.

Presidential System

A system of government where the executive is separate from and independent of the legislature, characterized by separation of powers and typically featuring an elected president who serves as both head of state and head of government.

Globalization

The increasing economic interdependence between countries that result in cultural, political, and technological diffusion, often involving multinational corporations operating across national borders.

Democratic Regime

A government characterized by meaningful electoral competition, protection of civil liberties and civil rights, rule of law, and checks on executive power.

State

A country with sovereign political institutions that rule over recognized borders and permanent population.

Supranational Organization

An international organization in which members must give up a degree of sovereignty for the common benefit through the integration of all member-states.

Consolidated Democracy

A system that has matured in its democratic principles, liberties, institutions, and practices so that reversion to authoritarianism is unlikely.

Single-Member District System

An electoral system where voters choose a representative for a geographic district in which the winner gets a plurality of the vote. This is usually used to describe elections for legislatures but could describe executive elections. Also known as First-past-the-post.

Federalism

The constitutional division of power between central and regional governments to give more regional autonomy.

Head of State

Chief executive who represents and symbolizes the country as a whole, generally in charge of foreign policy and military.

Authority

The power and capacity to make binding decisions and command obedience within a political system.

Political Legitimacy

The perceived rightful authority to rule a country. This can be derived from elections, effectiveness, tradition, religion, cult of personality, or political ideology.

Demographic change

Shifts in population structure over time in terms of age, gender, migration, or social class.

Parliamentary System

A system of government where the executive (head of government) is selected and accountable to the legislature, characterized by fusion of powers between executive and legislative branches.

Pluralist Interest Group System

Many autonomous interest groups compete with each other and have open access to the government to influence policy making decisions.

Rule of law

The restriction of government and private powers to the authority of legal principles and that the law is fairly enforced and no one is above the law.

Civil Rights

Legal protections ensuring equal treatment under law regardless of group membership, including protections against discrimination based on ethnicity, gender, religion, or other characteristics.

Civil Liberties

Freedoms of the people that should be protected by or from the government such as speech, press, and religion.

Political Efficacy

The ability of the people to understand how the government functions and believe that they can influence government action or policy.

Regime

A system of governance that creates enduring political institutions with formal and informal rules about exercising power. A government is simply the people who occupy government institutions for a limited time.

Political Stability

The ability of a political system to endure crises without the threat of regime change. Factors that undermine include conflict from social cleavages, economic challenges, corruption, violence, and external threats to sovereignty.

Corruption

Dishonest abuse of political power for personal gain including bribes, granting positions and privileges to friends or family, quid pro quo to allies or patrons, or capture of state resources.

Party System

The power, influence, or strength of political parties and the degree of competition between them (dominant party, two-party, multiparty).

Government Transparency

The ability of citizens to observe the government’s policy making process and hold government officials accountable through a free media and little government censorship.

Democratization

The ongoing process of transition from an authoritarian regime toward democratic governance, involving the establishment of competitive elections, expansion of civil liberties, and development of democratic institutions, which may stall, reverse, or remain incomplete.

Economic Liberalization

Freeing the economy from government influence through reduced taxation, regulation, and spending; privatization of nationalized (government owned) industries; removing international trade barriers.

Civil Society

Collection of voluntary associations and non-governmental organizations that act on their interests and try to influence policy through interest groups, protests, petitions, and contacting representatives.

Political Institution

A formal established part of the government or political process that lasts beyond the people who occupy it. This includes the presidency, legislatures, supreme court, bureaucracy, and specific political parties.

Authoritarian Regime

A government that restricts political rights and civil liberties, uses coercion to enforce authority and ensure compliance with its laws, and limits political competition.

Social Movement

A large group of people collectively calling for political or social change. These are different from interest groups because they are more widespread and have less hierarchical structure.