Political Science midterm two

Descriptive representation

When elected officials share the same demographic characteristics of the people that they represent

district

geographical area created to provide voters with representation

district magnitude

number of seats available in a certain district

electoral rules

the laws set forth that decide how voters choose their representatives and how votes are turned into seats

gender parity

when the gender quota mandates equal numbers of men and women

plurality

Referring to the most not the majority of votes

political representation

who is present in the national legislature and what they do

substantive representation

whose interests are manifested in the lawaking process

symbolic representation

facet of political representation regarding how citizens and voters behaviors and attitudes change in response to descriptive representation

apportionment

how districts are drawn for representation

Duverger’s law

winner take all electoral systems produce two party systems

gerrymandering

manipulating apportionment to favor one party or the other

single-member district

electoral district represented by a single office holder

decolonization

removing formal colonial governance by global north countries of global south countries

ethnocentric bias

viewing one’s culture as supreme to others

explanatory unit

relevant entity to explain patterns of results

inequality regimes

broad set of phenomena that produce and reproduce hierarchies and social inequalities in terms of gender race and class

logic of appropriateness

decision making framework where actions are guided by rules roles and identities deemed appropriate

methodological diversity

using a wide range of research methods to study complex problems

observational units

the relevant unit used in data collection and analysis

Most similar systems

research where two countries that are as similar as possible are compared but they differ in one key variable and outcome

most different systems

heterogenous countries that are compared and are different all except for sharing the same outcome

Bureaucracy

hierarchical administration used by governments

competitive authoritarianism

formal democratic institutions exist but are heavily manipulated by incumbents

Elite networks

informal high level connections between politicians and corporate executives that drive economic inequality

head of government

oversees day to day actions of the government

head of state

the country’s symbolic representation like the king of england

executive

the branch of governments tasked with executing and implementing the laws in a state

one-party rule

one party possesses overwhelming rule over the political process; other parties exist but they are dominated by the other party and kept in check

parliamentary system

gov system where head of government is chosen from the legislature by the ruling party and also serves as head of state

president

chief executive in presidential democracy

presidential system

system where the legislative and executive branch have separation of powers

prime minister

the chief executive in a parliamentary democracy; serves as head of state and is usually head of the largest party in parliament

semi - presidential system

mix between pure parliamentary and pure presidential systems; legislature elects head of gov and has the ability to remove them, but also popularly elected head of state

separation of powers

different branches of government possess separate and individual powers

vote of (no) confidence

constitutionally mandated authority to remove the government through a vote of the legislature

Civil service

civilian employees that work for the federal government departments and agencies

Electoral college

group of presidential electors that group every four years to vote indirectly for the president of the United States.

Spoils system

old political system where new politicals would fire all the old federal employees

Bicameral legislature

Two house legislature - house and senate

Clientelist policies

strategic discretionary exchange of public resources, goods, or services, for political support

Constituency service

services legislators give to their constituencies who are seeking assistance, such as helping them navigate bureaucratic processes

gatekeeping authority

the authority to block legislation from advancing to the chamber floor

legislative agenda

what bills will be heard on the senate floor, when they will be discussed, and if they will come before the chamber for a vote

Legislators

representatives who make the law

malapportionment

When the votes of voters in some districts count more than others - when they ratio between the residents and the representatives is significantly different from district to district

Negative agenda control

killing bills in committee or not letting them get to the chamber floor

Unicameral legislature

One house legislature

Agenda setting

What the legislature will decide to work on or create policy for

electoral cycle

cycle in which candidates emerge, campaign, take office, etc.

executive power

authority vested in the executive branch to carry out laws, implement executive orders, etc.

fusion of powers

where executive and legislative branches are connected, like in parliament

Issue ownership

where parties are perceived as being more trustworthy on certain issues than other parties

judicial power

interpreting laws, resolving legal disputes, and applying the constitution

median voter theorem

says that if voters are distributed along a one dimensional political spectrum, the voting method will elect the candidate preferred by the median voter

programmatic policy

structured, ideological approach to governance

targeted policy

government actions designed to serve specific groups or demographics

Unitary system

supreme authority concentrated in one single government rather than divided between state and federal and other levels

voting bloc

group of voters that are strongly motivated by a specific common concern

3/5 clause

clause that said only counted 3/5 of slaves in the population

appellate jurisdiction

where higher courts have the power to hear appeals from lower level courts

caste system

rigid form of social stratification that assigns individuals to a certain hierarchy based on birth race or class

codified

laws into a systematic written code

collegial politics

how judges interact with their colleagues

common law

system in which laws are less detailed and judges have lots of leeway to interpret the laws.

constitutional courts

in many countries, these are the only courts that have the power of judicial review

constitutionalism

system where constitutions place limits on government power

illiberal

freedom restricting

judicial independence

the idea that courts should not be subject to improper influence from other branches of government or private entities

judicial review

the power of a court to declare a law or act of government unconstitutional

original jurisdiction

the authority of a court to hear a case for the first time

religious law

system where the law is derived from sacred texts of religious practices

statutory interpretation

the process of determining what a specific means so that a court may apply it appropriately

judicial legitimacy

the public’s acceptance and trust in the judiciary

rights of nature

the right for nature to exist

rule of law

everyone is accountable to the law of the land

Empirical validity

whether our explanation works in the real world

Interdisciplinary

more than one branch of knowledge or academic discipline

methodology

processes, strategies and tactics used to investigate something

Policy analysis

the way experts identify and analyze potential solutions to public issues

policy evaluation

comprehensive analysis of a specific policy including target populations, resources spent, and the resulting costs and benefits of the policy

policy studies

field that analyzes causes, effects, and processes of public policy

public policy

combination of laws, statutes, and regulations that aim to address public issues

target population

group of individuals whose public affairs are important and should be solved

policy regime framework

theoretical approach to how

policy termination

cessation of government programs and policies that have proved redundant, dysfunctional, or unnecessary - sometimes hurts more than helps so has to be removed

Regulatory capture

occurrence where regulatory agencies who are supposed to act in the public interest instead advance the goals of commercial or political concerns of the special interest groups they regulate