Topic 4.1

• In some regimes, electoral rules and systems are structured to allow for the competitive selection of representatives, while in other regimes rules are frequently changed to advance different political interests.

  • Authoritarian regimes hosting elections increase legitimacy

  • General correlation between the number of political parties and how democratic a country is

    • Single political party = authoritarian (regardless of how many individuals partake in the party)

• Focus Countries and their Electoral Rules:

  • China’s Electoral Rules: The National People’s Congress of China selects members indirectly through a series of local and regional elections.

    • Technically has multiple parties, but we consider it a one-party system

    • People do not vote for the people in the NPC

  • Iran’s Electoral Rules: Iran’s Majles members are directly elected in single-member and multimember districts, which sometimes requires a second round of voting; candidates are vetted by the Guardian Council, and the legislative body lacks formal political party structures; a small number of the 290 seats in the Majles are reserved for non-Muslim minorities, such as Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians.

    • legally guarantees the diversity quota/minority representation

    • Single-member and multi-member are determined based on population

    • Iran does not have political parties… they have factions with ideological belief differences

    • 207 constituencies/districts in Iran and the seats are allocated from that

  • Mexico’s Electoral Rules: Mexico’s Congress of the Union has two chambers:

    • the Chamber of Deputies, which has 300 members directly elected in single-member districts by plurality and an additional 200 members elected by a proportional representation, party list system

      • Single-member districts: you need a majority (300 members)

      • Proportional Representation: take the total vote share and look at the percentage

    • the Chamber of Senators, what has 96 members elected in threeseat constituencies and 32 by proportional representation; gender quotas in the party list system have helped increase female representation in the legislature. (1/2 in the party list must be women)

    • Very similar to the US

  • Nigeria’s Electoral Rules: Members of the Nigerian House of Representatives (lower house) are directly elected in single-member districts with representatives from each of Nigeria’s states; the number of representatives elected from each state is based on population size, whereas the Senate has three members directly elected from each of Nigeria’s 36 states; two major parties have alternated control of the National Assembly.

    • Similar to the US

    • 360 in the House/108 in the Senate

  • Russia’s Electoral Rules: Changes to state Duma elections in Russia have returned it to a system in which half of the representatives are directly elected from single-member districts and the other half are chosen through elections that use proportional representation with a threshold.

    • 450 in the Duma/ 178 in the Federation Council

    • “With a threshold”: you may have to obtain a threshold in order to win any seats

    • Upper House: Federation Council

      • Russia’s Upper House had 2 representatives for each state (changed under Putin)

  • The United Kingdom’s Electoral Rules: The United Kingdom’s House of Commons members are directly elected under single-member district, first-past-the-post rules.

    • First-past-the-post means plurality

    • House of Lords was hereditary (inherit the position) but is turning into an elected and appointed body

• Proportional representation relies on multimember districts that promote multiparty systems.

  • You cannot have SMPD and PR working for the same seat

  • first-past-the-post and PR are the two sides of the coin

Topic 4.2

• Single Member District Plurality (SMDP): individual districts and whoever wins a plurality of that district wins that district’s seat(s)

  • Single-member district plurality systems tend to promote two-party systems. They provide voters with strong constituency service and accountability because there is a single representative per district, and they ensure geographic representation.

• Proportional Representation (PR): each party in the election will publish a party list and then look at the vote for constituency and look at the percentage —> take percentage of what each party won and they get that percentage of the seats

  • Proportional representation can result in an increase in the number of political parties represented in national legislatures, as well as an increase in the election of minority and women candidates.

• Different presidential election systems have different rules for determining election winners; some systems employ second-round or runoff elections to obtain a majority vote, while others decide elections based on a plurality of most votes cast among candidates in the race.

  • Majority (50% + 1); Plurality (highest percentage of voters)

  • Mexico’s president is elected by a plurality of the national popular vote, not an absolute majority.

  • Presidential candidates in Nigeria must win the most votes and secure at least 25 percent of the vote in two-thirds of Nigeria’s states, reflecting the federal characteristic of this regime.

  • Presidential candidates in Iran and Russia must win an absolute majority of the popular vote in either the first or second round of national voting. If no candidate wins an absolute majority in the first round, the second round is conducted between the top two vote earners in the first round. 

  • Majoritarian rules in Iran, Nigeria, and Russia provide the winners with a national mandate.

• Different political systems use electoral regulatory organizations to set various rules about ballot access and competition.

  • Iran’s Guardian Council excludes reform-minded candidates or those who do not support Islamic values from the ballot, which limits the number of candidates and reduces electoral competition and representation. 

  • As part of their democratic transition, Mexico and Nigeria have created independent election commissions that attempt to reduce voter fraud and manipulation and enhance electoral competition.

• Some regimes use an appointment system for membership in legislative bodies to promote a diversity of viewpoints, while other regimes use it to advance the political agenda of governing elites.

  • Appointments for the United Kingdom’s House of Lords are approved by the monarch with recommendations made by the prime minister and an independent commission (up in the air)

  • Half of Iran’s Guardian Council members are selected by the Supreme Leader, and half are nominees from the judiciary with Majles approval.

  • The appointment process for positions in Russia’s Federation Council is done by regional governors and the regional legislature. The creation of nine federal districts (with the annexation of Crimea) has re-asserted federal power under the Russian president by allowing him to appoint presidential envoys to the districts, and allowing regional legislatures to forgo elections and appoint a governor from a list of candidates approved by the president.

  • Election rule changes affect the representation of different religious, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups

  • The timing of legislative elections across the six countries can vary among systems based on term limit policies

Topic 4.3

• Party systems and membership differ among course countries, ranging from dominant party systems to multiparty systems.

• The degree of competition within multiparty systems can influence representation and formal political participation by citizens.

  • China’s Party System: China has rules that allow only one party, the Communist Party of China, to control governing power to maintain the values of centralism and order, while allowing eight other parties to exist to broaden discussion and consultation.

    • One party political system (even though there are 9 parties total)

  • Iran’s Party System: no political parties, they have political factions and different factions form around a candidate to support them

  • Mexico’s Party System: Rules that facilitate Mexico’s transition away from one-party dominance include eliminating el dedazo, privatizing state-owned corporations to decrease patronage, decentralizing and reducing one-party power at the subnational level, and establishing and strengthening the National Electoral Institute (IFE).

    • From 1946 to 2000, the PRI (Institutional Revolution Party) ruled Mexico; had el dedazo (winner of the election was hand chosen)

    • Multiparty System

  • Nigeria’s Party System: Nigeria’s multiparty system includes 30 registered political parties, with two strong parties, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress of Nigeria (APC), and a third party having a degree of electoral success.

    • Multiparty System (PDP and APC)

    • Nigeria’s third party is the Labour Party (LP)

  • Russia’s Party System: Rules ensuring one-party dominance in Russia include increasing party registration requirements, allowing only legally registered parties to run for office, using selective court decisions to disqualify candidates, limiting the ability of political opposition to present their viewpoints in the media, increasing threshold rules to limit party access to the ballot, and eliminating gubernatorial elections.

    • Dominant party system (United Russia)

    • Electoral set of rules to ensure one party dominance

    • Gubernatorial elections = governor

  • The United Kingdom’s Party System: The United Kingdom’s party system features competition primarily between two major parties, the Conservative and Labour parties, which control the legislature and executive (with first-past-the-post election rules favoring the major parties). But minor parties with regional representation are also able to win some legislative representation.

    • Minor parties (I.e. Scottish National Party)

    • Regarding party structure, the UK’s is the most parallel to the US (two major parties leaning towards opposite sides of the political spectrum)

• Catch-all political parties can earn support from groups with different characteristics, attracting popular support with ideologically diverse platforms.

  • Catch-all political parties = a party that lacks a strong identity

  • Conservative and Liberals are spearheaded by standard ideology (not catch-all parties)

• Some legislatures, such as the United Kingdom’s House of Commons, are highly organized by political parties, with voting based on strict party discipline that influences policy making.

Topic 4.4

• Party systems across the course countries vary in how they affect and are affected by citizen participation.

• Party systems vary across the course countries in terms of rules governing elections, party structure, and laws regulating political parties, as represented by:

  • Role of the Political Party System in China: In China, one party (Communist Party of China) has controlled the government (and military) since 1949, while minor parties have limited power to fill minor political offices.

  • Role of the Political Party System in Iran: Iran lacks formal political party structures; parties operate as loosely formed political alliances with questionable linkage to constituents.

  • Role of the Political Party System in Mexico: In Mexico, a multiparty system is dominated by National Action Party (PAN), the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD), and the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI); parties are allowed to form coalitions to nominate candidates for any particular election.

    • Morena Party = merged with PRD (Refer to PRD as Morena); liberal

    • PRI = moderate catch-all party

    • PAN = conservative

  • Role of the Political Party System in Nigeria: In Nigeria, multiple parties with ethnic quotas affect representation in the country’s federal legislature.

    • Large divide of north and south

    • APC (All Progressives Congress) = moderate center left party; controls the house, senate, and the president (Bola Tinubu)

    • PDP (People’s Democratic Party) = center right party

  • Role of the Political Party System in Russia: In Russia, one party has been dominating recent elections; diminished representation of smaller parties occurs because of changing threshold rules; the elimination and then reinstatement of single-member districts has affected regional parties and the representation of independent candidates.

    • United Russia’s Party is Putin’s party

    • In 2000 (Putin came to power), the election was fairly democratic —> Putin was the handpicked successor to Boris Yeltsin

      • United Russia’s power on Russia is growing, with more seats in the Duma and the Federation Council being appointed (not elected)

    • The legislative, judicial, and reforms in the election have led to other parties have less and less of a chance compared to the United Russia’s Party

  • Role of the Political Party System in the United Kingdom: In the United Kingdom, two large parties (Labour and Conservative) dominate the House of Commons.

    • Labour = left leaning; Conservative = right leaning

      • Tories = slang for the Conservative Party

      • More nationalist, less populist than the US (anti-EU)

    • In the United Kingdom, single-member district plurality elections diminish minor party representation.

      • Scottish National Party

    • In the United Kingdom, single-member districts allow regional parties to win legislative seats.

Topic 4.5

• Social movements involve large groups of people pushing collectively for significant political or social change.

• Interest groups are explicitly organized to represent and advocate for a specific interest or policy issue, while social movements represent multiple groups and individuals advocating for broad social change.

• Social movements across course countries have put pressure on the state to promote indigenous civil rights, redistribute revenues from key exports such as oil, conduct fair and transparent elections, and ensure fair treatment of citizens of different sexual orientations, including:

  • The Green Movement in Iran that protested corruption in the 2009 election (election where Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won)

  • Zapatistas or Chiapas uprising in Mexico in response to socioeconomic inequality and the negative impact of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

    • NAFTA was replaced by USMCA (United States, Mexico, Canada)

  • Movements in Nigeria (often militant), including the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) and the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), which have emerged to advocate for the rights of an ethnic minority or protest against unjust methods of extraction and distribution of oil in the Niger Delta region

    • Environmental protection due to fossil fuel developments

    • Ogoni people are an ethnic minority

    • Rentier State: a state that has significant natural resource wealth (like Nigeria) and the distribution of that wealth is questionable

  • The Boko Haram (Islamic militant group) movement attempting to establish an Islamic state in northern Nigeria 

  • Domestic protests over Russian state Duma’s passage of legislation against same-sex couples

• Grassroots social movements exert their power up from the local level to the regional, national, or international level; starts from the bottom

• With limited organizational hierarchies, such movements are difficult for state-run military or law enforcement to suppress, but some social movements also have difficulty in attracting and mobilizing support among fellow citizens or negotiating with governmental representatives.

Topic 4.6

• Pluralism and corporatism are systems of interest group representation.

  • Pluralist systems promote competition among autonomous groups not linked to the state (interest groups are not state-sanctioned, created, or run); more likely to be seen in democratic systems

    • Allows them to be truly grassroots (comes from the people)

    • The groups are created on their own and can act however they want in the confines of the law, with competing interest groups in order to have both sides of an issue represented

  • Corporatist systems is when the government controls access to policy making by relying on state-sanctioned groups or single peak associations (SPAs) to represent labor, business, and agricultural sectors; more likely to be seen in authoritarian systems

    • The government may say “if you have thoughts on agriculture, you need to talk to the agriculture interest group” —> government will provide a forum that allows people to participate in interest groups

• The state retains more control over citizen input in a corporatist system than it does in a pluralist system.

• Interest group systems can change over time, as represented by Mexico’s moving from a corporatist system toward a pluralist system.