Democratic Systems

There are three Presidential Parliamentary Presidential- parliamentary

Presidential President is sole effective head of government Real decision- making powers Shares power with a separately elected legislature

Parliamentary Most widely used form in the world. The head of the country is called the “government” and consists of the leader and ministers of the executive. Often has a ceremonial head of state as well.

How it works First, the people elect the national legislature. The legislature elects the leader and approves the cabinet. The leader and cabinet must appear before the legislature on a regular basis and defend their decisions/policies. The legislature can vote the government out of power. –often called a “vote of no confidence”

Single Party Majoritarian Government One party wins absolute majority of seats in the national legislature and forms the government. Votes are more along lines of party than in U.S. Very efficient system.

Majority Coalition Government Two or more parties agree to share cabinet posts to form a voting majority No clear majority Advantages –smaller parties get a say –negotiations and compromise Disadvantages –the more parties in the coalition, the less chance of compromise –inefficiency and ineffectiveness –more influence for a smaller segment of society –instability

Minority Government No majority party and no groups are able to form a coalition How does work get done? –parliamentary alliance: some parties agree not to share cabinet posts, but will vote together –policies passed on vote-by-vote alliances –some parties agree to abstain from certain votes –usually dissolves before end of term

Presidential-parliamentary system Contains both a president and a prime minister Also called a dual-executive system Intended to speed up the process, maximize the efficiency, and stabilize the executive. Voters also elect legislature –of course, this can lead to gridlock

Ways to elect a president Directly –People vote directly for the candidate –If a candidate gets a majority in the first round, that person wins –If no majority in the first round, a runoff between 2-3 candidates in a second round Electoral college –People elect president indirectly –Winner-takes-all in a state (even if no majority) –Most electoral votes wins

Ways to elect a legislature single-member district / plurality method –country is divided into multiple districts –one representative per district –candidate with most votes wins proportional representation –a party list is created –a number of reps from that list are placed in the government ~equal to the percentage of popular votes the party received

SAGE