AP Comparative Government Exam Prep Notes

Free-Response Question: Quantitative Analysis

Turnout in Iran's Parliamentary Elections

• Analysis of voter turnout in Iran from 1980 to 2020.
• Eligible voters’ turnout percentages vary across election years.
  • Lowest Turnout: The year with the lowest voter turnout in Majles elections can be identified from the bar chart data.

Trends in Voter Turnout

• Description of trends in voter turnout:
  • Overall fluctuations in voter turnout might be observed, noting years of significant rises or drops in participation.

Political Efficacy

• Definition: Political efficacy refers to citizens' belief in their ability to influence government and participation in the political process.
• It reflects one’s confidence in the effectiveness of their actions within the political framework.

Conclusion about Voter Turnout Trends

• Conclusions linked to political efficacy and voter turnout trends:
  • Analyze how changes in political efficacy (e.g., feelings of disenfranchisement or empowerment) correlate with variations in voter turnout, leading to observed trends.

Factors Impacting Voter Turnout

• Discuss an additional factor impacting voter turnout:
  • For example, social, economic factors, or historical events that may have influenced voter engagement beyond political efficacy.

Political Culture and Participation

Understanding Repression in Iran

• The Iranian government imposes strict controls on public discourse and dissent since it is an authoritarian regime.
  • Media Restrictions:
  • The regime has fluctuated media openness, clamping down on press that critiques government policies.
  • Following the rise of political dissent in the early 2000s, several newspapers have been forcibly closed.
  • Cyberpolicing:
  • Authorities use advanced tactics to monitor social media and internet usage to suppress dissenting voices.
  • Platforms like Telegram and Instagram have been blocked or restricted in certain contexts.

Human Rights Context

• Systemic repression of political dissidents through unlawful detentions and threats of violence:
  • Labeling dissenters as terrorists and employing tactics like assassinations abroad.
  • High rates of arbitrary detentions, torture, and lack of fair legal representation.

Women's Rights in Iran

• Overview of the changing status of women:
  • Post-revolution policies have reversed many rights, imposing societal restrictions on women’s freedoms (divorce and attire mandates).
  • While women were given political rights, actual political engagement varied significantly through the years, with notable participation in the Majles.
• Education reforms positively impacted female enrollment, although barriers persisted in various fields due to cultural conservatism.

Socioeconomic Improvements

• Increment in women's economic participation, but gender disparities remain:
  • Despite some progress, women primarily take on roles in lower-paying jobs and face systemic employment hurdles.

Historical Context of Ethnic and Religious Diversity

• Iran’s diverse population primarily consists of Persians and Shiite Muslims, with significant ethnic minorities.
  • Religious Rights:
  • Efforts to protect the rights of minority religions legally exist but are often not effectively implemented.
• Discriminatory practices against minorities, particularly those outside of the Shiite faith, remain prevalent despite constitutional guarantees.

Exam Preparation: Free-Response Questions

Conceptual Analysis

• Encourage understanding definitions and their contextual applications in political frameworks.
  • Example of explaining changes in regime vs. government.

Quantitative Analysis Preparation Tips

• Describe and analyze data trends relevant to political contexts, drawing logical conclusions based on observed patterns.