1. AP Comparative Government & Politics
Review
AP Comparative Government & Politics

2. Britain

3. Type of Government Parliamentary Democracy & Sovereignty Unitary
Fusion of Powers
Constitutional Monarchy

4. Current Leaders Prime Minister Queen Deputy P.M. Head of Government
Theresa May- Conservative
Queen
Head of State
Queen Elizabeth II
Deputy P.M.
Nick Clegg
Liberal-Democrat

5. Major Political Parties
Conservative
Liberal-Democratic
Labour

6. Type of Elections
Single-Member Plurality
“First Past the Post”

7. Legislative Body
Parliament
House of Commons
House of Lords

8. Important Leaders Clement Attlee Margaret Thatcher Tony Blair
Gordon Brown
David Cameron

9. Judiciaries
Supreme Court-No judicial review
Common Law

10. Major Cleavages Racial & religious differences Urban vs. rural
Regional- English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh

11. Revolutions, Coups, Wars
Gradual change over time

12. Recent Economic Trends
Austerity measures
Cutting the welfare state

13. Current Policy Issues
Economy
Big Society
Devolution

14. Bureaucracy Whitehall Quangos Administers the government Far-reaching
Semi-autonomous government organizations

15. Military
Independent
Stays out of policy

16. The Russian Federation

17. Type of Government Asymmetrical Federal State- Not balanced
Semi-Presidential System (has P.M.)
Soft Authoritarianism

18. Current Leaders President Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
Dmitry Medvedev

19. Major Political Parties
United Russia
Dominant Party
Communist Party
Opposition
A Just Russia
Fake?

20. Type of Elections Proportional Representation Direct Election Duma
Presidency
Must win > 50%

21. Legislative Body Federal Assembly of Russia Federation Council Duma
Upper House
Duma
Lower House
More Powerful!

22. Important Leaders Joseph Stalin Mikhail Gorbachev Boris Yeltsin
Dmitry Medvedev
Vladimir Putin

23. Judiciaries Constitutional Court Operates on civil law
Sides with the executive

24. Major Cleavages Muslim v. Orthodox Slavophile v. Westernizer
Chechnya v. Russia
Slavophile v. Westernizer

25. Revolutions, Coups, Wars
Fall of the USSR (1991)
1993 Constitutional Crisis
Chechen Wars

26. Recent Economic Trends
Increased Privatization
“State Capture”

27. Current Policy Issues Adoption Tension Recovering from Recession
Global Reception

28. Bureaucracy
Patron-Client Connections
Nomenklatura

29. Military
Traditionally played a role in politics
More independent now

30. People’s Republic of China

31. Type of Government Communist Party-State Political Branch
CCP-guanzi +merit
Executive Branch
State Council
Legislative Branch
National People’s Congress
Judicial Branch
Supreme People’s Court
Military Branch
PLA

33. Type of Government Unitary State Parallel Hierarchies
Control in Beijing
Parallel Hierarchies
Chairman
President
Head of CMC
All Xi!

34. Current Leaders
President
Xi Jinping
Premier
Li Keqiang

35. Major Political Parties
Chinese Communist Party
…that’s all!

36. Type of Elections No national level elections
Some regional & local elections

37. Legislative Body National People’s Congress
Only legislative house in PRC
Legislation can be debated, but is rarely defeated

38. Important Leaders Mao Zedong Deng Xiaoping Hu Jintao Xi Jinping
Revolution Leader
Deng Xiaoping
Hu Jintao
President
Xi Jinping

39. Judiciaries Civil Law Criminal Law Supreme People’s Court
Lawsuits have been increasingly filed and won
Criminal Law
Justice is swift and harsh
Supreme People’s Court
No judicial review
Oversees lower courts
Appeals death sentences

40. Major Cleavages Urban v. Rural Tibet v. PRC
Technocrat v. Old School Commies

41. Revolutions, Coups, Wars
Chinese Civil War
1917 – 1949
1980s student rebellions
Tiananmen Square

42. Recent Economic Trends
Increased but limited privatization
Exponentially growing economy
Industrialization & globalization

43. Current Policy Issues
International relations
Improving economy

44. Bureaucracy Immense in size Cadres
Person who exercises authority in a communist-party state
Around 40 million

45. Military People’s Liberation Army Central Military Commission
World’s largest military force
Central Military Commission
Runs military

46. Nigeria

47. Type of Government First Republic Lots of autocracy in- between
Westminster model
Lots of autocracy in- between
Fourth Republic
Federal republic
Presidential system
Strong executive
Checks & balances

48. Current Leaders
President Goodluck Jonathan

49. Major Political Parties
People’s Democratic Party
Conservative
Dominant party
Multiparty system

50. Type of Elections Direct election for president
One candidate
Majority of yes votes
Two candidates
Majority
More than two candidates
Highest number
No less than ¼ of votes in at least 2/3 of the states
Single-member plurality to National Assembly

51. Legislative Body National Assembly Senate House of Representatives
Upper house
3 per state
House of Representatives
Lower house
Number apportioned by population

52. Important Leaders Yakubu Gowon Olusegun Obasanjo Dictator
Prevented Biafran secession
Olusegun Obasanjo
Military dictator
Popularly elected president

53. Judiciaries Supreme Court State Courts Becoming a major player
English common law
Shari’a law

54. Major Cleavages Ethnic lines North v. South Oil developers
Muslim v. Christian
Oil developers

55. Revolutions, Coups, Wars
Many, many, many coups over the years
1960 – 1999
Nigerian Civil War
Biafran independence squashed through starvation

56. Recent Economic Trends
Rentier state
Oil
Unfair distribution of wealth

57. Current Policy Issues
Islamism in the north
Maintaining economic ties

58. Bureaucracy Prebendalism
Leads to corruption in the bureaucracy & elected officials

59. Military
1960 – 1999
Effectively controlled government & the state
1999 to present
Leaders were purged
More independent

60. Mexico

61. Type of Government Federal Republic Separation of Powers
Checks & Balances

62. Current Leaders
President
Enrique Pena Nieto

63. Major Political Parties
PRI
Dominant party
Centrist
PAN
Right of center
PRD
Left of center

64. Type of Elections Party threshold in legislature = 2%
Proportional representation
Congress
FPTP
Direct election
President

65. Legislative Body Congress of the Union Bicameral Senate
Upper
Chamber of Deputies
Lower

66. Important Leaders Miguel Hidalgo Zapata & Pancho Villa Lazaro Cardenas
Independence
Zapata & Pancho Villa
Mexican Revolution
Lazaro Cardenas
PRI power!
El Dedazo
Vicente Fox
PAN president
Felipe Calderon

67. Judiciaries Roman & Napoleonic tradition Federal & state courts Amparo
Civil law
Federal & state courts
Amparo
Citizens ask for a writ of protection claiming their rights have been violated by the government

68. Major Cleavages North v. South Amerindians v. Europeans
Who gets the help?
Amerindians v. Europeans
Technicos v Old School

69. Revolutions, Coups, Wars
Mexican Revolution
1917 Constitution
War on Drugs
Ongoing
Human cost is high
Economic cost is high

70. Recent Economic Trends
Import Substitution Industrialization
NAFTA
Implications?

71. Current Policy Issues
War on Drugs!
Immigration
Corruption

72. Bureaucracy Expansive Parastatals Upper level = “confidence employees”
Lower level = stable
Parastatals

73. Military
Independent
Largely fighting against cartels
Corruption

74. Iran

75. Type of Government
Theocracy
Elements of democracy

76. Current Leaders Supreme Leader President Ayatollah Khameni
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

77. Major Political Parties
Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran
VERY CONSERVATIVE
Others are legally recognized but many are banned & persecuted

78. Type of Elections President Assembly of Religious Experts
Direct election
Closely regulated by the Supreme Leader
Assembly of Religious Experts
No transparency

79. Legislative Body Assembly of Religious Experts Guardian Council
Elections every 4 years
8 year terms
Conservative clerics
Guardian Council
Appointed by Supreme Leader
Can veto any legislation

80. Important Leaders Ayatollah Khomeini Mohammad Pahalavi
Leader of Iranian Revolution
Mohammad Pahalavi
Last Shah
Mohammad Khatami
Fought for some liberal ideas

81. Judiciaries
Shari’a law
Punishments are harsh & severe

82. Major Cleavages Liberal Muslims v. Ruling Party Green Movement-2009
Against Ahmadinejad

83. Revolutions, Coups, Wars
Iranian Revolution
1978 – 1978
Hostage crisis
Green Protests
2009 elections

84. Recent Economic Trends
Rentier state
Implications?
Sanctions- started to lift
Economy is better

85. Current Policy Issues Maintaining the ruling party
Youth/women
Nuclear proliferation
Power? Bombs?
Israel

86. Bureaucracy Grown since the Revolution Dominated by clerics
Enforces Islamic guidelines

87. Military Several branches Revolutionary Guard
Controlled by the Ayatollah
Revolutionary Guard
Protects Islamic ideals within the country