Political Orientation and Social Contract in Australia

what is liberalism

Liberalism is a political ideology that values individual rights, freedoms and protection with minimal government intervention

define democracy

a system of government by the whole population, typically through elected representatives.

what is the political spectrum

A way to show different political views from left to right (is economic), as well as up and down which is authoritarian and libertarian (more social based)

Left-wing in political spectrum?

Wants more help for people (like free health care, education), and more government control of the economy.

Right-wing in political spectrum?

Wants less government, lower taxes, and people to take care of themselves. Focuses on tradition and security.

what are the verticals called in political spectrum

Authoritarian and Libertarian, more social based

authoritarian on political spectrum

Authoritarianism means believing in a government where one leader or a small group has a lot of power, people have fewer personal freedoms, and everyone is expected to follow the rules set by those in charge

libertarian on political spectrum

Libertarianism means believing that people should have as much personal freedom as possible, with very little government control over their lives and choices

define Separation of Powers

This idea splits government into three parts so no one gets too much power.

what does the Legislative branch do?

Legislative (Parliament+GG) - makes and changes laws.

what does the Executive branch do?

Executive (Prime Minister, Ministers & GG) - puts laws into action.

what does the Judiciary branch do?

Judiciary (High Court of Australia) - interpret the laws and settles disputes based on it.

Arms of Government

Executive

legislative

judiciary

Social Contract

An unspoken agreement where people follow the laws and pay taxes.

Rights and Duties in Australia

Rights: Vote, Fair trial, Free speech. Duties: Obey the law, Vote, Do jury duty.

Federation

Federation is when Australia became one country on 1 Jan 1901.

Why Australia Federated

Free trade - No taxes between states, Defence - One strong army, Immigration - Same rules across Australia, Pride - Wanted to be one united country.

Referendum Process

Parliament passes a bill, The people vote (this is called a referendum).

Australia's Constitution

The rulebook for how Australia is run.

Federal Model (1901)

Australia uses a federal system.

Roles of Government Levels

Federal: Defence, immigration, trade; State: Schools, hospitals, roads; Local: Parks, bins, local services.

Federal Parliament

Two houses: House of Representatives - Makes laws, represents people; Senate - Checks the laws, represents states.

Popular Sovereignty

Means the people have the power.

House of Representatives

Members are elected every 3 years.

Senate

Members are elected for 3 years.

General Will

An idea from Rousseau. It means what's best for everyone - not just one group.

Voting Systems

House of Representatives - uses preferential voting; Senate - uses proportional representation.

Importance of Elections

Elections let people choose leaders, share opinions, and hold the government accountable.

Majoritarian system

Is used in house of representatives

-Based on single member electorates that vote for one parliamentary representative to represent a specific electorate

-they only have one member per electorate

Australis House of Representatives use a majoritarian electoral system.

Preferential voting has three features:

- absolute majority is required to win (50% + 1).

- order from wanted most to wanted least (1,2,3,4,5)

- if no one gets 50% + 1 (on the first preference), then they take your second preference and add that to the uncancelled candidates.

we use the system that REQUIRE ALLLL candidates to be numbered. called exhaustive preferential voting, whereas others do not mandate (optional preferential voting)

Proportional systems

used in the SENATE

12 members for state

2 for each territory

To win a seat, you must have at least 1/6th of the votes.

THREE FEATURES TO MEMORISE:

This is because each state elects 6 new senators every 3 years.

How many members are in the house of representatives?

150 electorates are elected from each area.

what is an electorate?

roles of the houses in parliament?