POLI 130 Final Exam Review (pt. 2)

democratic deconsolidation

the gradual erosion of democratic norms, support, practices, and/or institutions in an otherwise established and long-standing democracy

democratic breakdown

the acute and rapid decline in a democracy’s decision-making processes, institutions, and civic spaces

democratic backsliding/erosion

erosion of democratic institutions to become less democratic and more authoritarian

executive aggrandizement

the process by which a democratically elected leader expands their own power and weakens democratic checks and balances without formally suspending democratic institutions

vote of no confidence

if members of the legislature don’t like the PM, they can hold an early vote to dismiss the government

vote of confidence

if a very popular PM wants to pass a piece of controversial legislation, either the PM goes or the legislation passes

cohabitation

a system of divided government that occurs in semi-presidential systems when the president is from a different political party than the majority of the memers of parliament

lame duck effect

an official in the final period of office, after the election of a successor

cabinet instability

a state of governmental turmoil or weakness in a parliamentary system, often marked by frequent changes in the cabinet’s composition or government collapse

premier-presidential system

PM has more power than president

presidential-parliamentary system

president has more power than PM

plurality/majoritarian system

• one rep per district

• “first past the post” selection rule

• reps chosen by majority/plurality rule

proportional representation system

• characterized by multi-member districts

• reps chosen in proportion to the number of votes received

• reflects the distribution of ideologies/partisanship of the population much more realistically

district magnitude

the number of reps to be elected to a legislative body in each electoral district

Duverger’s Law

number of parties closely related to electoral system:

• single member district plurality systems —> two-party systems

• PR electoral systems —> multi-party systems

strategic effect

how the mechanical effect influences the “strategic” behavior of voters

mechanical effect

the way votes are translated into seats

alternative vote

another way of saying “ranked choice”

political party

a group of people who, under a common banner, field candidates to popularly elected assemblies

descriptive representation

representation of citizens’ ascriptive characteristics

substantive representation

representation of citizens’ policy preferences

Citizens United vs. FEC

A controversial SCOTUS decision that freed restrictions on campaign contributions from non-profits to support candidates indirectly

consociationalism

a form of governance which seeks to regulate the sharing of power in a state that comprises diverse societies by allocating these groups specific representation in the political system

segmented autonomy

delegation of personal status code to individual communities

preferential voting

a system of voting whereby the voter indicate his order of preference for each of the candidates listed on the ballot for a specified office. If no candidate receives a majority of first preferences, the first and second preferences, etc. may be counted until one candidate obtains a majority

centripetalism

political philosophy that advocates for institutions and policies designed to encourage political moderation and reduce polarization by providing incentives for politicians to appeal to a broader base of voters across group divisions

civil society

the sphere of organized, non-governmental, non-violent associations that exist outside the state, market, and family

civic community

communities populated with dense civic associations and characterized by highlevels of cooperation and civic engagement

amoral familialism

individuals prioritize the immediate, material interests of their nuclear family above all else, with little regard for the wider community or abstract moral principles

social capital

networks of mutual trust and reciprocity developed through interpersonal ties

uncivil society

a set of associations within civil society that challenge liberal democratic values by promoting exclusivist ideologies or predatory practices

Weimar Republic

the Weimar period comes between WWI and WWII; precedes Nazi Germany

Nazi Party

National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP) came after the Weimar Republic and used civil society to reach voters

Michels’ Iron Law of Oligarchy

the principle stating that large organizations will naturally tend towards centralized, elite control, undermining rank-and-file engagement in the organization

bridging social capital

social capital that links individuals across multiple cleavages or categories of difference

bonding social capital

social capital that exists within a community

ethnic group

a group of people who see themselves as united based on a shared belief in a common ancestry and common ascriptive traits

nation

a group of people linked by unifying traits and the desire to control a territory that is thought of as the group’s national homeland

primordialism

a theory of ethnic identity that sees ethnicity as being “natural,” or fixed, as having always existed, and as defined by kinship, language, or phenotype

social constructivism/institutionalism

a theory of ethnic identity that sees ethnicity as being “created” or “constructed” through social and political processes

instrumentalism (ethnicity)

a theory of ethnic identity that sees ethnicity as a device that groups/individuals use to unify, organize, and mobilize populations to achieve larger goals

ethnic entrepreneur

a political elite who strategically seeks to mobilize or polarize ethnic identity for the sake of gaining economic resources or political advantages (i.e., power). 

Hutu and Tutsi

• separate ethnic groups in Rwanda with different ancestry

• Tutsi racially “superior” to Hutus

• because of ethnic differences, Tutsi are inimical to Hutus

• Hutu and Tutsi are not genetically different, and frequently intermarry

• Tutsi are wealthy pastoralists, and Hutu are poor agniculturalists

Ubureetwa

a system of forced labor, performed as “payment” for living on a chieftain’s land (legally mandated at 42 days/year)

President Juvenál Habyarimana

Had a central role in creating the conditions that led to the 1994 Rwandan genocide. He favored Hutus and institutionalized discrimination against the Tutsi minority. Was assassinated.

Arusha Accords

attempted to end civil wars in both Rwanda and Burundi through power-sharing, democratization, and refugee repatriation

Interhamwe

youth militia of the MRND (Hutu), used to perpetuate violence against Tutsis during Rwandan genocide

ethnic security dilemma

a situation in which actions taken by an ethnic group to increase its own security cause reactions from other groups, which in turn lead to a decrease rather than an increase in the original group’s security

The Utasha in Croatia

a Croatian fascist/terrorist movement that ruled Croatia during WWII. Responsible for genocide.

Josip Broz Tito

led Yugoslavia to independence from Nazi Germany, attempted to create a unified Yugoslavia, and then after he died, Yugoslavia collapsed into war

Slobodan Milosevic (Serbia)

• Serbian party leader/president

• pursued Serbian nationalist policies

• could be considered an ethnic entrepreneur

Franjo Tudjman (Croatia)

• first president of independent Croatia

• autocratic, ethno-nationalist

Krajina

• frontier region of Serbia

• multi-ethnic (Croats + Serbs)

• legacy of war crimes

effective number of parties

measure of party system fragmentation that accounts for the number of parties and their relative size

BJP

• Bharatiya Janata Party

• one of the two major contemporary political parties in India

• predominantly Hindu party

• far-right

Congress Party

• one of the two major contemporary political parties in India

• predominantly Muslim

• center/center-left

Gujarat

• a state on the western coast of India

• contributes significantly to India’s industrial production and GDP

intercommunal civic associations

civil society organizations that group individuals across multiple cleavages/categories of difference

intracommunal civic associations

civil society organizations that group individuals within a single community

Surat

• two parties (Congress + BJP)

• Muslim population (12%)

• Legacy of intercommunal harmony under Gandhi

• History of relative ethnic peace

Ahmedbad

• two parties (Congress + BJP)

• Muslim population (14%)

• Legacy of intercommunal harmony under Gandhi

• History of violent ethnic riots