Democracy and Participation

• what is the difference between power and authority?

  Power refers to the ability to make people do things or control others, while authority refers to the legitimate right to exercise power.
• What is meant by ’government legitimacy’?

  Whether it is popularly accepted that a government or any other political institution, has the authority to hold power and make rules.
• What is democracy?


  Comes from Greek meaning people power. Political decisions should be made by all people not just a few. Everyone should have an equal opportunity to participate.
• What is direct democracy?

  Direct democracy is a system of government where citizens directly participate in decision-making and policy-making processes. It’s infrequently used in the uk but an example of direct democracy used is a referendum
• What is representative(indirect) democracy?

  A system of government where citizens elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf. The public do not get a direct say in the decisions made in this country.
• What are the advantages of direct democracy?

  • Genuine ‘people power’
  • No need for elected politicians
  • Encourages participation and educated the public on key issues
  • People must take responsibility for their decisions
  • Prevents power from being concentrated in the hands of an elite
• What are the disadvantages of direct democracy?

  • Population size=difficult and expensive
  • Public may not have time or interest, and may not understand many issues
  • wealthy groups can distort the debate
  • public might be unwilling to make unpopular, necessary decisions
  • Tyranny of the majority - the majority can vote to oppress minority groups
• What are the advantages of representative democracy?

  • More practical- time/population size
  • Elected representatives may have greater expertise and experience
  • Representatives can implement unpopular, but necessary policies
  • Representatives are held accountable for their actions at the next election
  • Avoid the tyranny of the majority - all groups should be represented
• What the disadvantages of the representative democracy?

  • Representatives might not always represent the views of the public
  • Parties can have a great influence over the actions of representatives
  • Low public interest and participation can leave decisions to a small elite
  • Our elections make it difficult for smaller parties to win, meaning many views can go unrepresented
• What is a referendum?

  A referendum is a direct vote in which the entire electorate is invited to vote on a particular proposal or issue.
• Are referendum results binding on Parliament, or are they only advisory?


  Advisory
• How much influence does Parliament and the government have over referendums?


  Parliament and the government decides whether a referendum will be held. This can lead to broken promises. Governments can avoid referendums that are unlikely to give the result they want. Parliament and gov also decided the wording of the referendum.
• What are initiatives?

  • used in 24 states
  • Citizens collect a required number of signatures to trigger a vote on a new bill, or an amendment to the state constitution.
• How are referendums different in America?

  • A vote or bill or state constitutional amendment that has already been passed by the state legislature.
  • Legislative referendums - the state legislature puts bills/amendments up for a vote.
  • Popular/veto referendum - Voters collect signatures to trigger a vote on a passed bill
• What sorts of issues are usually decided by referendum in the UK?

  • Use referendum to get public approval for constitutional reforms.
  • A constitution is a set of fundamental rules for how a state is to be governed.
• What sorts of issues are voted on in IS initiatives and referendums?


  Local authorities can hold referendums to measure public opinion on local issues, such as whether to introduce elected mayors or congestion charges.
• Why has the use of referendums increased since 1997?

  Increase use of referendums under labour essentially established a new convention that major constitutional uses should be decided with a referendum.
• Hapathy - when voter abstain from voting because they are content with the way things are.
• Focus group - a group of people assembled to give their opinions on a political campaign or idea before it has been launched.
• Democracy - the modern word deriving from the ancient greek 'demos' and 'kratos'.
• E-democracy - online methods of political participation.
• Mandate - when a party has the authority to carry out its manifesto, usually gained by winning an election.
• Turnout - the proportion of the registered electorate who vote in a given election.
• Legitimacy - term used to describe the extent to which a stat or its government can be considered to have the right to exercise power.
• Pluralism - a view that power is, or should be fragmented and dispersed. Open competition creates a degree of balance, preventing the emergence of a powerful elite.
• Electorate - the term used to describe the proportion of the public that is registered to vote.
• Political apathy - when the public has a lack of emotion, interest or concern about politics, leading to lower participation and engagement.
• Representation - term used to describe elected officials acting on behalf of others.
• Direct democracy - a political system where the people themselves make key political decisions.
• Liberal democracy - a form of representative democracy characterised by protected individual rights and freedoms, the rule of law and a government limited by a constitution.
• Parliamentary democracy - a representative democracy where the elected parliament holds all political authority and where the government is drawn from parliament.
• Political participation - term used to describe any action (formal or informal) taken by citizens to influence the outcome of a political issue.
• Politics - term refers to the activity of managing the state, attempting to overcome differences of opinion and conflict to create rules and make decisions.
• Referendum - a mechanism that allows the electorate to choose between alternative courses of action on a particular issue.
• Participation crisis - where political engagement is so poor that it threatens to undermine democracy.
• E-petitions - an online of triggering a government response or debate in parliament.
• Trustee model - model of representation proposed by Edmund Burke MP, stating that an MP, once elected, should freely use their own judgement when voting on issues.
• Delegate model - model of representation that states that MPs should act on the instructions of their constituents.
• Initiative - a process that allows citizens to trigger a public vote on a political question by collecting enough signatures.
• Recall election - where voters sign a petition calling for a vote to remove an elected official ahead of their next election.