...The standing Canadian electoral system is called the “first past the post” system, which consists of a practice where the candidates of certain parties run, and if elected they win a seat in the house of commons, where they represent their riding. The party with the most seats, and majority vote are appointed by the Governor General to run the Canadian Government. However, simple this process may seem to some people, there is actually more going on behind the scenes, which arises some important questions that we believe Canadians should be informed about. The questions include, how democratic Canada’s electoral system is, what other types of electoral mechanisms are possible, if the current system is the best for the Canadian context, and why or why not, and finally, what type of system the Prime Minister is likely to recommend. The first question we will look at answering is how democratic the Canadian electoral system is, and the...
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...Unibersidad De Manila 659-A Justice Cecilia Munoz-Palma Street, Ermita, Manila, Metro Manila Parliamentary: A Good Form of Government Aira C. Adao UC-48 Prof. Marvin Ignacio Politics and Governance January 20, 2015 I. Title: Parliamentary: A Good Form of Government II. Abstract HYPOTHESIS 1. What is Parliamentary Government? 2. What are the types of Parliamentary Government? 3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of Parliamentary System? 4. What countries are implementing Parliamentary System? 5. What is the difference between Parliamentary System and Presidential System? OBJECTIVES * To point out the good sides of the Parliamentary system. * To discuss the process of legislation of the Parliamentary Government. * To tackle the important topic about Parliamentary system. * To form a good information to the readers about the essence of Parliamentary system. SIGNIFICANCE * This term paper gives information to the reader about the system of Parliamentary Government. * This paper will benefit the ones who search information about the essence of Parliamentary system. III. Introduction Parliament, (from Old French: parlement; Latin: parliamentum) the original legislative assembly of England, Scotland, or Ireland and successively of Great Britain and the United Kingdom; legislatures in some countries that were once British colonies are also known as parliaments. The British Parliament, often referred...
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...the behavior that is exhibited is not altruistic. For a behavior to be altruistic one needs to understand that they are benefiting others at their expense. Humans possess the will necessary to perform altruistic deeds, and can put it to great use. Humans are still animals, and may perform altruistic behaviors without realizing it. Altruism in politics is rare, but it is necessary to prevent social groups from being outcast. A proportional representation system will allow for altruism by helping minorities be represented at all times, while not requiring the current majority to relieve their representative power. Frans deWaal shows that alrutism is actually more natural than it seems, despite the apparent inconsistencies they present. Altruism is a choice to help others over one’s self. Only humans can be truly altruistic, as humans have the potential to make choices and realize their consequences almost completely, however seemingly altruistic events due occur naturally in the animal kingdom. “Taking on the midwife role another female spent no less than two and a half hours assisting the in experienced mother”(deWaal 688). The helper bat did know actually know and think about its actions and consequences. The event that occurred was a natural reaction to stimuli. Although this example may be biased due to the bats being of the same species, there are other instances where altruistic actions occur among different species. Humans have the ability to process information much better...
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...The most important event in the creation of the United States government was the Philadelphia Convention in 1787, also known as the Constitutional Convention. At this event, delegates from every state except Georgia gathered in Philadelphia to discuss the topic of what should replace the Articles of Confederation. Of the plans suggested by delegates, the New Jersey Plan and the Virginia Plan were the most appealing to those at the convention. The Virginia Plan recommended proportional representation while the New Jersey Plan wanted equal representation. The United States government would be shaped in a completely different way today if the Framers had not put forth each of the two plans which formed the Great Compromise. The Virginia Plan was put forth by James Madison, who had been working on it for a while. He proposed that for the national government to be strong it should have more power than the states. Madison had the idea that Congress should...
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...TO WHICH EXTENT DOES PARTY-LIST PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION PROVIDE POLITICAL PARTICIPATION OF MINORITIES IN BENIN, GUINEA-BISSAU AND NAMIBIA? Pavel Pylypcuk, Alexandra Sidorova Aalborg University 2014 Table of contents 1. Introduction 3 I. PART 5 2. Electoral system 5 2.1. Types of electoral system 6 2.2. Proportional representation 6 2.3. Party-list proportional representation 7 II. PART 8 3. Structure of case studies 8 4. Benin 9 4.1. Historical introduction and the electoral system 9 4.2. Elections to National Assembly in years 1991-2007 10 4.3. Political parties in Benin: profile, electorate and interactions 11 4.4. Conclusion 12 5. Guinea-Bissau 13 5.1. Historical introduction and the electoral system 13 5.2. Elections to National People's Assembly in years 1994-2008 14 5.3. Political parties in Guinea-Bissau: profile, electorate and interactions 15 5.4. The electoral process in Guinea-Bissau 16 5.5. Conclusion 17 6. Namibia 18 6.1. Historical introduction and the electoral system 18 6.2. Elections to National Assembly in years 1989-2009 19 6.3. Political parties in Namibia: profile, electorate and interactions 20 6.4. The electoral process in Namibia 21 6.5. Conclusion 23 7. Final conclusion 24 8. Bibliography 26 1. Introduction Electoral systems are considered as an instrument, which can relatively quickly and effectively...
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...11, 2014 Govt 2305 American Government Today’s democratic societies practice representative democracy but the ideal of a true representative democracy, where those elected to power mirror the population of a given society is inconsistent with reality. The reality is that, there is an underrepresentation of different minority groups both in terms of their presence in the political assemblies and in terms of their substantive representation. History has shown that minority groups have been continuously underrepresented in most of the world’s democratic societies, and while there have been small improvements in some countries, for the most part minorities in general have yet to make any impressive gain towards more effective political representation. In the existing literature, the under-representation of minorities in countries across the world and the potential impact of the Single Member Plurality and “pure” Proportional Representation systems on that representation have been studied extensively by authors and social scientists such as Norris (2004), Lijphart (1994), Blais (2008), Pitkin (1997), Reynolds and Reilly (2005) and Diamond (2008). While those studies have shown that minorities are better represented under “pure” proportional representation than under Single Member Plurality systems, little is known about the propensity of Mixed Member Proportional systems to provide minority groups with access to power and or better representation. If a pure PR system is conducive...
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...political participation contains a number of points such as awareness of current issues, supporting online forums, taking part in all kinds of elections, standing for political office, joining and becoming active in pressure group and political party and participating in physical and e-petitions (McNaughton: 2012). Vlassopoulos (2009:29) mentions that direct popular participation in making decisions is the vital aspect in definition of democracy. One of the main functions of Parliament is representation. This means that elected MPs should represent and defend the interests of their voters. However, in real life citizens have no significant impact on the activities of legislators. Another important function is that it is the origin of political authority and exercising of power is impossible without Parliament’s sanction. Furthermore, the UK government membership depends on it: the members have to be from the House of Lords or House of Commons. McNaughton (2012:65) says the Blair government created variety of reforms for House of Lords and House of Commons after election in 1997. It included changes in organization of Prime Minister’s Question Time; Prime Minister’s rights; number of hereditary peers (it was reduced to 92 people), life peers (527...
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...scepticism it is particularly important that we scrutinise our political policies and procedures, so as to bolster a confidence of our countries governance in its people. Electoral systems are perhaps one of the most important aspects of the political process as they are the people’s main mechanism for having their voices heard. The main challenge for any political system is to strive to assist in creating a government that is an accurate representation of its citizen’s desires and future hopes for its political direction while ensuring stable governance. This essay will discuss the Irish electoral system of Proportionate Representation through the Single Transferable Vote (PRSTV) and whether a Single Member Plurality (SMP) system is a viable and worthwhile alternative. By first giving a brief history of the Irish electoral system as well as an explanation of how both systems operate. Then laying out some of these electoral systems advantages as well as disadvantages. Dáil Éireann and its members, Teachtai Dála (TDs) have been elected by the PRSTV electoral system since Irish independence in 1922. There are two main reasons for this. In the early 1900s a period in which Ireland was going through great political change PRSTV had historical support by the nationalist movement, which had the biggest political following in the south of Ireland. Arthur Griffith the founder of Sinn Fein was among the first members of the Proportional Representation Society of Ireland. PRSTV was...
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...electorate. Its main functions are representation, scrutiny and be legitimate. I believe it carries out these functions very well. Holding the government to account (scrutiny) is arguably, the most important function of the lower house. Scrutiny is carried out by 3 main methods; Prime Ministerial Questions (PMQ), Opposition days and Departmental Select Committees. PMQ’S occur every Wednesday afternoon; and they enable ministers from the current government and also the opposition to post questions to the Prime minister; they aim to scrutinise the works of government and see how effective it is. Departmental select committees are groups that examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the individual government. There are 19 committees, each one representing their expertise. Most committees have a chair who is seen as having notable knowledge and understanding on the specific area, for example Ed Smith CBE for health committee. They do research into the policies made, and then pose questions and thoughts to the ministers, and scrutinise them. Opposition days, whereby they have 20 each session (year), are another method, whereby they can determine the agenda of the day (Labour is the opposition now). Furthermore, the most important feature of holding the government to account is the fact that the electorate have a general election every 5 years, which was introduced in the Fixed Term Parliament Act 2011 by the Coalition government. A vote of no confidence, can be used...
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...Publicity and Electioneering Activities It is important that a candidate becomes well known in the area they are hoping to represent and to this end they will often undertake a great deal of publicity work, such as leafleting houses, displaying posters, and canvassing door-to-door for votes. Publicity costs money and so the more wealthy parties will have an advantage. In addition, during a general election you will often see party political broadcasts for the main parties outlining their policies. This is because they can afford publicity campaigns that include film-making. Voting Processes Used As technology has evolved there have become more ways to cast a vote than ever before. Most people are familiar with the traditional way of going to a polling office (usually a church, school or community centre that has changed purposes for the day) to go into a voting booth and place a cross on a ballot slip next to the name of the candidate you wish to vote for. First Past the Post (FPTP) The British electoral system is based on the FPTP system. This system is very clear-cut and definitive, the candidate with the highest number of votes in a constituency wins. In order to vote in a FPTP system you simply mark a cross (X) next to the name of the candidate you are choosing. Alternative Vote (AV) Voters must rank the candidates on the ballot paper in order of preference. If a candidate receives 50 per cent or more of first preferences then they are elected. If not, then the candidate...
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...European Government and Politics GV 2218 Continuous Assessment 2 Name: Shane O Callaghan Student Number: 109819851 Course: BCOM2 Assess the merits of the political reform process underway in the UK. You should examine the proposed changes under a number of headings including but not limited to the electoral system, the House of Lords, and open government. You must discuss why potential reform should take place, its observable implications and consider comparative examples where the changes already exist. Elections are an integral figure in any countries political system. Elections are also important symbolically in most competitive party systems, legitimizing a country’s political system in the eyes of it citizens. They offer a means of participating in politics, elections also give a feeling that they are exercising choices about who should represent them in the national parliament and about who should form the next government. One common debate of which Party System is best to run a Nation has long been argued by politicians and also which is the electoral system that governs the conduct of elections. With elections, change or reform can always be seen and in one case the United Kingdom is a perfect example, in May 2010 the first united coalition in the Britain since World War 2 and now currently there is an on-going debate for political reform in the UK regarding the current electoral system. Would new government bring closure to the drama of reform in The House of Lords...
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...sure to disable the TFE and topic text links before doing so. Furthermore, be sure to submit it in the proper folder. ASSIGNMENT BACKGROUND - IMPORTANT POINTS As usual, before I direct you to the week's assignment questions, there are a few remarks I would like to make regarding important, related issues and/or background material. Please consider the comments below, which touch upon a number of topics addressed in our text and which include a number of related observations taken from my own research. Purposes of Elections Firstly, one key point to remember is that elections, originally designed in order to allow citizens to select their own leaders, are also used by governments in order to build support for their policies. This is particularly true of parliamentary governments, which generally require simple plurality votes in order to pass sweeping legislation. In parliamentary governments, political parties are represented in direct proportion to the percentage of votes that they receive in general elections. Therefore, parliamentary majorities usually enjoy the implicit consent of a large percentage of the population whenever passing laws or implementing policies. However, if support is waning, a parliamentary government will sometimes call for a new, general election to hopefully gain more legislative seats, hence more support for their policies. Types of...
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...of a one vote advantage over the nearest rival. This system is not proportional which means that for every constituency there is only one MP representing them in Parliament. Even though the FPTP system has come under criticism, it remains as the electoral system used for Westminster and local government elections, and its advantages are the following. The FPTP system is very simple and easy to understand. The voters only have to write an “X” to indicate their choice. There is no need to rank candidates or to make more than one preference, in contrast to other more complicated systems where confusion arises. For example, there are a huge number of spoilt papers under various types of Proportional Representation as a result of voter confusion. In Scotland when STV was used there were thousands of spoilt ballot papers. However it could be argued that the advantage of ease is overrated as the electorate could be prepared enough to cope with another system as they do in other countries such as Germany or Switzerland. Speed is another lauded attribute of FPTP. We can get the results in constituencies just hours after the polls close and a verdict on who will secure the ability to govern alone before the next dawn breaks. By contrast other electoral systems can take days to calculate as votes are redistributed. In the Republic of Ireland it can take many days to discover who has the ability to form a government as recounts and redistributions continue under the STV. For example...
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...person for a political office or other position in UK is called Election. According to fixed term parliament act on 15th September, 2011 the next election will be held on 7th of May 2015.The act provides for general elections to be held on the first Thursday in May every five years. There are two provisions that trigger an election other than at five year intervals. A motion of no confidence is passed in Her Majesty's Government by a simple majority and 14 days elapses without the House passing a confidence motion in any new Government formed A motion for a general election is agreed by two thirds of the total number of seats in the Commons including vacant seats (currently 434 out of 650) Previous to this act, the duration of a Parliament was set at five years, although many were dissolved before that, at the request of the Prime Minister to the Queen. ●text: http://www.parliament.uk/about/how/elections-and-voting/general/ Importance of Election Education: Instructors, counsellors and others who work with young people play an important role in Educating new and future voters about the electoral process. For this reason it is important that those who work with youth do what they can to educate youth about the democratic process. In the 2005 British Columbia general election, only 35% of eligible voters aged 18-24 voted. Reversing this alarming trend is critical to the future health of our democratic institutions. ●text: http://www.elections.bc.ca/index.php/voting/ ...
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...in their civic duty of voting; only then can a proper governing body be chosen to represent the will of the majority. Abraham Lincoln got to the core of democracy when he stated, “the government of the people, by the people and for the people.” In the last 50 years of Canadian history we have begun to see a decline in voter turnout; ranging from 80% of citizens voting in 1962, gradually dwindling to 59.1% in the year 2008 (Dickerson, Flanagan & O'Neill, 2010). It is important to understand why citizens vote the way they do in order to determine what may or may not be successful in regards to winning a majority government; factors that influence the voter’s choices include socio-demographic characteristics, beliefs and values, partisanship and confidence in political leaders. There is a great deal of debate surrounding which policies could increase voter based participation in democratic systems, but the most irrefutably successful policies would be those applied in systems of proportional representation ("Statistics by country," 2011). Voting is part of Canadian civic duty; unfortunately not all Canadians exercise their right to vote. Over the past 20 years the Canadian voter turnout has been on a steady decline, from 75.3% turnout in 1988, to 59.1% voter turnout in 2008. Even more specifically, the decrease in voters is a result of the younger generation not taking part in the electoral process ("Falling voter turnout," 2006). Elections Canada released information...
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