AP COMP Govt

Bicameralism / Bicameral Legislature: 2 House Legislative Body

Judicial Branch: branch of govt for interpreting laws and settling disputes

Civil Society: Web of memberships and organizations outside the state that help people define and advance their own political interests

Political System: All individuals and institutions that make up public policy, in and out of govt

Privatization: transfer of state-owned property/businesses —> private ownership

Sovereignty: ability of a state to carry out actions or policies within its territory independently

Representative Democracy / Indirect Democracy: democratic form of govt where people exercise their political power by voting in free and fair elections to select representatives who will run the govt for the public

Pluralism: political power is split among many groups that openly compete for a chance to influence the government’s decision making

Legitimacy: gives authority/power, a value whereby an institution is accepted by the public as right and proper

Rule of law: All individuals and groups are subject to the same laws equally regardless of power or authority

Imperialism: Policy of colonizing other countries, establishing empires

Legislative branch: govt branch that makes laws

Theocracy: govt controlled by religious ideas and leaders

Executive branch: enforces, executes, and administers laws

Gross Domestic Product: all the goods and services produced by a country’s economy in a given year

Federalism: govt system that divides govt power between levels (national, state, and local) with each exercising direct authority over the people

Political culture: basic values and assumptions that people have toward authority, the political system, etc.

Failed State: so weak that its political structure collapses —> anarchy + violence

Nationalization: The government takeover of a private business, industry, or asset, bringing it under state ownership and control.

Proportional Representation: an electoral system in which political parties compete in multi-member districts, voters choose between political parties, and seats are awards to parties proportionally according the the voting results

Neoliberalism/ Economic Liberalization: integrating into global markets (development strategy)

Comparative Politics: the study of domestic politics across countries

Parliamentary System: no real separation of powers and in which the roles of the Head of State and Head of Govt are assigned to separate executive offices. The executive is dependent on the direct & indirect support of the legislature to remain in power

Public Policy: The final decisions, laws, and rules made by a state that define what it will do

Presidential System: Political system in which the roles of Head of State and Head of Govt are combined in 1 executive office. The executive branch exists and presides separately from the legislative. The executive office is normally not accountable to the legislative and cannot be dismissed by it

Oligarchy: rule by a few -- small groups exercise control (usually corrupt/selfish)

Hybrid Regime: democratic country with free and fair elections of policy makers, with eligible adults able to vote BUT has one dominant group that makes the real decisions behind the scenes

Electoral System: set of rules that decide how votes are cast, counted, and translated into seats in the legislature

Corporatism: the way people are integrated into the political system via patrion-client relations. where govt officials interact with outside people before they set policy

Suffrage: the right to vote in a state

First-Past-the_post (FPTP) or Single-Member District Plurality (SMDP: electoral system in which individual candidates compete in single-member districts; voters choose between candidates

State-Owned-Enterprises: companies owned/controlled by the state (3rd world)

Command Economy: socialist principles of centralized planning, quota setting, and state ownership of the means of production

Autocracy/Dictatorship: rule by 1 with ulimited power

Government: The administration of the day/ formal part of the state

Judicial Review: mechanisms by which courts can review the actions of govt and overturn those laws or policies that violate the constitution

First World (MDC, more developed country) : developing

Third World (LDC, less developed country): developed

Globalization:increasing interdependence of economies, political systems, and societies

referring to trades/reliance on other countries

Tariff

tax on imported goods
Protectionism

Import Substitution: uses tariffs and other barriers on imports to advance domestic goods and industries

instead of importing good, replace by producing domestically
protect domestic industries

Structural Adjustment

Countries with hugely variable inflation rates (due to govt instability, economic instability) = hard to trade globally
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank
Regulations/Adjustments (esp for developing countries) in exchange for loans/debt relief/globalization or trade participation done w/o regard of adjusted countries’ personal benefit
ex. spending reductions, price control and govt support/public subsidy removal, tax tightened, privatize businesses (remove/sell state owned), lower import tariffs and export quota, deregulation (closer to free market), currency devaluation (exports cheaper for others), increase interest rates (fights inflation)

Austerity

Govt political-economic policies to reduce budget deficits and debt
Spending cuts, tax increase

Rentier State

Country derives substantial amount of national reserves via exporting (renting/selling) its own domestic/indigenous natural materials to others
especially skilled/exceptional at in 1 thing
ex. US with military and oil
less taxes on citizens

Economic Liberal

idea that government does less
counter intuitive:

Modernization Theory

idea that countries want to become a MDC

Socialism

mix of private enterprise (smaller) and state controlled (usually bigger industries)

Capitalism

in theory: no government, all demand and supply

Communism

in theory: total govt control, total central planning

Welfare Estate: governments in industrialized democracies that pursue an active economic policy

enacts xyz programs, taking care of people
high taxes
any system ( used interchangeably IRL)
ex. : France, Greece, UK (1970s), many European

relationshpi b/w sub-regional and national govt:

sub-regional government

US: state

Federal

sometimes states/sub-regions can tell federal government no
Mexico, Russia, Nigeria, US

National Govt

State Govt

nation = idea/cultural identity/identity

state = physical place

Unitary System: all govt power is in the national/central govt

unitarianism

subregional states/government no ability to go against (if federal govt ex. Beijing. cares to implement, must listen. if not, do whatever)
China, Iran, UK

confederalism

sub-regionals are more powerful than national
1st draft US, Articles of Confederation… not sustainable

countries borrow money,not paying back —> bankrupt

nation: cultural/social entity

ex. Palestine, Cherokee, Kurds

state: political/territory entity

ideal/combo: nation-state

US, Japan

change in government: leaders, parties

change in regime: structure, rules, norms

Regime: practices that endure from govt to govt (ex. constitutional order)

illiberal/procedural democracy vote

controlled media
non-competitive
Russia, Iran
voting gives leader legitimacy, even if unfair
not necessarily substantive

democratization (verb) : illiberal —> liberal (into a consolidated liberal democracy (noun))

China is neither

liberal/substantive democracy vote

independent press
competitive, outcome not pre-decided
free, fair… civil liberties intact
UK
unlikely to dissemble into an illiberal democracy
also procedural

referendum: question asked with full intention of carrying out answer

privatization: govt stays out

head of state: ceremonial, executive role that represents the people

head of govt: practical… executive role… runs states… formulates and executes policy

Countries with both

Nigeria, Mexico, US…