AP Comparative Government & Politics Flashcards

Political Dimensions

• Civil liberties: Freedom of belief, speech, and assembly.

• Rule of law: Equal treatment of citizens and due process.

• Neutral judiciary: Checks on abuse of power.

• Open civil society: Citizens lead private lives, independent mass media.

• Civilian control of the military: Restricts military seizing control.

• Advanced democracies: High legitimacy due to established systems.

• Participation, competition, and liberty are guaranteed, methods vary.

Economic Dimensions: Modernism

• Modernism: Values with industrialization.

• Values: Secularism (non-religious life), rationalism (reasoning), materialism (valuing objects), technology, bureaucracy.

• Emphasis on freedom rather than collective equality.

United Kingdom's Economic Opportunities

• Highly educated workforce.

• Strong, diversified economy.

• Strategic location in Europe, close ties to other countries.

United Kingdom's Economic Challenges

• High national debt.

• Low savings rate.

• Declining population.

Economic Sectors

• Agricultural (primary) sector

• Industrial (secondary) sector

• Service (tertiary) sector

Primary Sector

• Includes: Agriculture, forestry, fishing, energy, and natural resource extraction.

Service Sector

• Includes: Retail, hospitality, tourism, healthcare, education, government, banking, finance, and insurance.

Agriculture Sector

• Includes: The production of crops and livestock.

Terminology of the British Isles

• British Isles: Geographical term including Great Britain and Ireland.

• Great Britain: Island containing England, Scotland, and Wales.

• United Kingdom: Political entity including Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

• Ireland: Island divided into Northern Ireland (part of the UK) and the Republic of Ireland.

Early Traditions

• 1066: William the Conqueror's victory established the House of Lords as a check on the king's power by requiring consultation before levying new taxes.

• Magna Carta: King John forced to sign due to excessive taxes, marking the start of constitutionalism and rule of law.

• 14th Century: The House of Commons was created due to growing commercial class.

The English Civil War (1642–1651)

• King Charles I attempted to govern without Parliament.

• Parliament's supporters won, solidifying constitutional limits on the monarch.

The Glorious Revolution

• 1688: Parliament invited William of Orange to become head of state to avoid Catholic rule under James II.

• James II fled, and William promised to adhere to the English Bill of Rights, guaranteeing Parliament's role and protecting citizens' rights.

Emergence of the Labour Party

• Traditional political parties: Conservative (Tory) Party and Liberal (Whig) Party.

• Labour Party: Formed in 1906 to represent the working classes.

• Aims: Public education, housing, better pay, medical care.

• Ideology: Trade unionism with democratic principles for a fairer society.

• The Liberal Party declined to third place.

Collectivist Consensus

• Post-Great Depression and WWII period.

• Labour candidates pledged to pool resources to "win the peace" with progressive policies for a modern welfare state.

• Beveridge Report: Recommended guaranteed subsistence income for all citizens.

• 1945: Labour won power, nationalizing heavy industries (railroads, steel, coal mines, oil, electricity).

National Health Service (NHS)

• State ownership of assets to fund welfare programs.

• NHS provided free medical care to all citizens.

• Free compulsory secondary education and old-age pensions were established.

Crisis in the 1970s and Thatcherism

• Collectivist consensus challenged: Inefficient nationalized industries required taxpayer subsidies.

• OPEC formation: High oil prices led to inflation, unemployment, declining GDP.

• 1979: Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher, elected to shift the country rightward.

• Thatcher blamed socialist policies and the welfare state for Britain's problems.

Thatcherism Policies

• Privatization: Energy, transportation, and utility companies were sold to the private sector.

• Reductions in the welfare state: Reduced housing assistance and old-age pensions.

• Reducing Labour Union Power: Refused to concede to union demands during strikes, diminishing union influence.

• Market Economics: Removed wage and price controls to allow market supply and demand to set prices and wages.

Legacy of Thatcherism

• Revitalized the British economy in the 1980s.

• Restored a sense of optimism.

• Many workers faced difficulties due to Thatcher’s policies.

The Third Way

• After economic crisis: Moderation returned to British politics.

• 1997: Tony Blair elected, promising a centrist "New Labour" Party.

• Blair’s popularity declined after supporting the Iraq War in 2003.

Reforms Under NEW LABOUR

• Human Rights: The European Convention on Human Rights was adopted into Britain’s constitution.

• Devolution: Regional parliaments granted autonomy to Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

• London Mayor: The city of London could now elect its own mayor and London Assembly.

• Lords Reforms: Hereditary peerages in the House of Lords were mostly replaced with life peerages.

• Judicial Reforms: The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom was created as the highest court for appeals.

IRA

• Violence in Northern Ireland: Northern Irish separatists (IRA) agitated for secession from Britain.

• 1998: Blair's government negotiated the Good Friday Agreement, creating a lasting peace.

• Constitutional reform for devolution and a Northern Irish regional parliament.

"Big Society"

• 2010: Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government formed.

• David Cameron initiated a "Big Society" energized by volunteers and private organizations.

• 2015: The Conservative Party regained its majority in the House of Commons.

The Third Way

• Influential in the development of: None of the above.

The Big Society

• Main policies: Increased involvement of volunteers and community groups in public services.

Legitimacy

• Traditional legitimacy: Long-established practices and conventions.

• Rational-legal legitimacy: Uncodified British constitution widely accepted.

Regime

• Freedom House Ratings: Free (political rights: 1, civil liberties: 1).

• Polity IV score: 10.

• Fair, free competitive elections.

• Universal suffrage since 1928.

• Independent press and judiciary.

• Robust civil society.

• Civilian-controlled military.

Economic System

• Mixed economy.

• Postwar: Developed a welfare state with universal healthcare (NHS).

• Thatcherism in the 1980s reduced government’s role through privatization.

• WTO membership commits Great Britain to global free trade.

Constitution

• Uncodified constitution (unwritten).

• Collection of documents, statutes, and political practices.

• Flexibility is an advantage.

• Significant constitutional laws were passed in 1998–99 under Tony Blair.

Constitution - Disadvantages

• Flexibility can be a disadvantage; few checks on government power.

• Unlock Democracy: Government is too powerful without a written constitution.

Levels of Government

• Unitary state: Power centralized in the Crown in Parliament.

• Subnational governments: Local councils and regional assemblies.

• Trend: Ceding more authority to these bodies through devolution.

Supernational Organizations

• World Trade Organization (WTO).

• Great Britain was a founding member in 1995.

• Committed to free trade and abiding by WTO decisions.

European Union (EU)

• Joined the Common Market in 1973.

• Margaret Thatcher reluctantly signed the Single European Act in 1986.

• John Major signed the Maastricht Treaty in 1993, creating the European Union.

• Great Britain did not join the European Monetary Union.

• 2015: Referendum on EU membership due to rise of UKIP.

European Union (EU) - Key Issues

• What is the main challenge Great Britain will face as it slowly evolves out of the European Union?

  • Negotiating its commitment to global free trade

• What was the main reason for Margaret Thatcher's reluctance to sign the Single European Act in 1986?

  • She was skeptical of the challenges to British sovereignty from the European Union

Legislative-Executive Relationships

• Westminster model: Parliamentary system with a fusion of executive and legislative authority.

The Dignified

• Queen Elizabeth II: Head of state, constitutional monarch for 65 years.

• Meets weekly with the prime minister, delivers the queen’s speech, gives royal assent to bills.

• House of Lords: Symbolic role, can delay legislation (except money bills).

The Dignified (House of Lords)

• Since 1999, 92 hereditary peers, 687 life peers, and 26 Lords Spiritual.

• Calls for further reform to add popular election process.

• Queen's main role in the Westminster model?

  • To add legitimacy and authority

The Efficient (House of Commons)

• Premier legislative body with parliamentary sovereignty.

• 650 Members of Parliament (MPs) elected by plurality.

• The leader of the majority party in the House of Commons is asked by the queen to form a government.

The Efficient

• No majority party: The queen asks the leader of the largest party to form a coalition government.

• Change in prime minister: Internal party leadership challenge or resignation.

• In both cases, the majority party selected a new leader

The Efficient (Cabinet)

• Cabinet: Headed by the prime minister, who is the chief executive in charge of policymaking.

• The prime minister selects ministers, including chancellor of the Exchequer, foreign secretary, and home secretary.

• Collective responsibility: All members must speak with a unified voice on policy or resign.

• Losing a vote of confidence: The entire government must resign and call for a new election.

Westminster Model - Key Features

• How is the prime minister selected in the Westminster model?

  • By the leader of the majority party in the House of Commons being asked by the queen to form a government

• What is the main feature of parliamentary sovereignty in the Westminster model?

  • Only an act of Parliament can overturn an act of Parliament

• How can the prime minister be removed from office in the Westminster model?

  • By an internal party leadership challenge

Elections - United Kingdom

• House of Commons MP:

  • Frequency: Every 5 years unless vote of no confidence or 2/3 vote in Commons

  • Election system: First past the post

  • Most recent example: June 2017

• Devolved Parliaments:

  • Frequency: Every 4 years unless vote of no confidence or 2/3 vote in Parliament

  • Election system: Proportional representation

  • Most recent example: Scotland: 2016, Wales: 2016, Northern Ireland: 2017

• Local Councils:

  • Frequency: Every 4-5 years

  • Election system: First past the post

  • Most recent example: May 2017

• European Union Parliament:

  • Frequency: Every 5 years

  • Election system: Proportional representation

  • Most recent example: May 2014

• Referendums

  • Frequency: Called by prime minister

  • Election system: Majoritarian

  • Most recent example: Brexit June 2016

Political Parties

• Two catch-all parties: Conservatives and Labour.

• Regional parties win in their respective countries: Scottish National Party (Scotland), Plaid Cymru (Wales), Democratic Unionist and Sinn Fein (Northern Ireland).

• Liberal Democrats had broad appeal through 2010 but suffered electorally after 2010–15.

Interest Groups Systems

• Interest group: Association influencing public policy.

• Desire to affect government policy to benefit themselves or their causes.

Interest Groups Systems - Categories

• Economic interests, cause groups, public interests.

• Private and public institutional interests.

• Non-associational groups and interests.

Interest Groups Systems - Great Britain

• Most powerful: Economic groups due to job creation and trade importance.

• CBI: Largest business lobby group, associated with the Conservative Party.

• TUC: Largest union organization, associated with the Labour Party.

Interest Groups Systems - Issue-Based Groups

• Issue groups: Amnesty International, Electoral Reform Society, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND).

• Environmental groups: Greenpeace, Campaign to Protect Rural England, Keep Britain Tidy.

Interest Groups - Key Groups

• Which is the largest business lobby group in Great Britain?

  • CBI

• Which is the largest union organization in Great Britain?

  • TUC

INTEREST GROUPS IN BRITAIN

• Pluralist system: Interest groups and civil society organizations compete for state attention.

• Quangos: Publicly funded bodies that operate as integrated parts of the private sector.

Social Cleavages

• Historically: Class.

• Recent elections: Narrowing of class identification.

• Wealthy: Tend to support the Conservatives.

• Union workers: Tend to support Labour.

• Retired working-class: Among Conservatives’ strongest supporters.

• Highly educated degree holders: Vote Labour.

Civil Society and Social Capital

• Robust civil society: Many opportunities for voluntary organizations.

• Trust in political institutions: Declined from 36% to 26% in 2017.

Civil Society - Key Characteristics

• What is the role of civil society in Great Britain?

  • It provides opportunities for citizens to form voluntary, autonomous organizations

• What is the purpose of building social capital in Great Britain?

  • To create networks of trust and cooperation

Media Roles

• Active, competitive media environment.

• Publications: Tabloid press to Financial Times and Economist.

• BBC: Publicly funded, world-renowned for independent coverage.

• 2000 Freedom of Information Act: Strengthened media's role as government watchdogs.

Media

• Consolidation: A concern, as few firms own most media outlets.

• 92% of the country has the Internet and the British government does not censure access.

Media Consolidation

• What is the main concern regarding media consolidation in Great Britain?

  • The ownership of media outlets by a few firms

Political Participation

• Formal methods: Declining as fewer join parties and voter turnout decreases.

• Recent referendums: Higher turnout (Brexit 72%, Scottish Independence 84%).

• Informal methods: Increasing; easier organizing with social media.

Political Participation cont.

• Use of e-petitions to bring issues to MPs' attention.

• Parliament: Goal of being "fully interactive and digital with secure online voting for all voters" by 2020.

Citizenship and Representation

• Acquired through birth or naturalization.

• Immigration policies: Contentious.

• Brexit vote: Supported by those wanting less immigration.

The European Union

• Controversial from the start.

• Margaret Thatcher’s Euroscepticism found support within the Conservative Party.

• Young, urban, educated citizens: Voted to stay.

• Older, rural, working-class voters: Voted to leave to regain British sovereignty and reduce immigration.

The Environment

• Support for a post-materialist approach and sustainability.

• The Green Party has won more electoral support.

• Wide popular support for policies to combat climate change, to promote nuclear proliferation, and to prevent fox hunting.

Health Care

• National Health Service (NHS): Centralized, single-payer system providing free access to all citizens.

• Financed by progressive taxation and state-owned enterprises.

• Strains on the system: Aging population, higher medical costs, budget problems, and long wait times.

Terrorism

• Previously: Confined to IRA activities in Northern Ireland.

• 1998 Good Friday Agreement: Resolved conflict in Northern Ireland.

• 2017: Horrific attacks by Islamic extremists.

• Other attacks were attempted but failed or were foiled in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2012, and 2013.

Devolution and the Status of Scotland

• 2014: Scottish referendum on independence.

• 55% voted “No,” keeping Scotland within the United Kingdom.

• Scotland may again consider independence depending on Brexit negotiations and its relationship with the EU.

Election Systems

• Proportional representation system (PR):

• Large geographic constituency elects many representatives.

• Voters cast a vote for a political party.

• The political party receives a percentage of legislative representatives from the constituency roughly equal to the percentage of the vote they received

• PR systems create another common phenomenon of coalition government.

Proportional Representation System (PR) - Voting Influence

• Individual candidate’s political ambitions are largely dependent upon the candidate’s position on these lists. individuals tend to be highly influenced to support the party and stay in the good graces of the party leadership consistently, at the risk of being lowered or moved off of the next election’s party list.

• When women are on a party list of candidates in a PR system, on the other hand, voters seem no more reluctant to vote for their preferred party, and a greater percentage of women win legislative seats. This same trend is also observable with minority race or ethnicity candidates.

Single member-district (SMD) system

• Single-member-district systems divide the country into many constituencies, each of which will allow one “single member” to represent the constituency in the legislature.

• In each constituency, the candidate with a plurality (the most votes, but not necessarily a majority) would win representation

Single member-district (SMD) system - impact

• The SMD system disproportionately benefits the largest parties (Conservative and Labour) compared to their share of the vote, while substantially reducing the share of seats for minor parties compared to their share of the vote.

• This system makes a coalition government much less likely, as in the vast majority of cases, one of the two major parties will manage to gain majority control of the legislature, and coalitions among parties will be unnecessary to establish majority rule.

Election Systems Used

• The United Kingdom, Iran, and Nigeria use exclusively SMD election systems for their legislatures.

• Russia used an exclusively PR system to elect the State Duma from 2007–2012

• Mexico uses a mixed system in both houses in which some seats are elected in SMD constituencies, and others are elected from PR party lists.

Judiciary

• Independent judicial system: Checks on executive and legislative power.

• Protects civil liberties and civil rights.

• Judicial review: Power to overturn a law or executive action.

Legal Systems

• Common law systems: Prior judicial decisions take precedence.

• Code law (civil law) systems: Systematically applies the law as written.

• Sharia law: Legal system based on Islamic law.

Law Types and Judicial Review By Country

Bureaucracy

• Bureaucrats: Unelected officials who carry out laws.

• Write regulations, enforce rules, assign fines.

• Large, complex organizations with hierarchical structures.

Bureaucracy - Selection of Officials

• Meritocracy: Staffed by subject area experts selected by examination.

• Patron-client system: Officials selected for party loyalty or loyalty to an elected official.

Elite Recruitment By Country

Political change

• Revolution: Regime change caused by a large, popular movement.

• Coup: A small group of elites seize control without fundamental change.

• Reform: Adjustments to institutions or rules using constitutional procedures.

Political change - Responses

• Recognition: A group’s status is acknowledged.

• Representation: A group is given the opportunity to participate more fully in the political system.

Types of Political Change by Country

Economic Change

• Economic liberalization: Freeing the economy from government control.

• Privatization: Selling state-owned enterprises (SOE) to private investors.

• Reduce tariffs, taxes, and regulations.

• Allow markets to expand using foreign direct investment (FDI) and special economic zones (SEZ).

Examples of Economic Change By Country