Chapter 6: Democratic Regimes

• Democracy is political power exercised either directly or indirectly through participation, competition, and liberty; political power resides with the peole
• Liberal democracy refers to a political system that promotes participation, competitions, and liberty; emphasis on individual rights and freedoms
• Liberal democracies tend to have socialist regimes that emphasize collective welfare over individual
• Republicanism is indirect democracy that emphasizes the separation of powers within a state and the representation of the public through elected officials, as opposed to monarchy
• Separation of power is the clear division of power between different branches of government and the provision that specific branches may check the power of other branches
• In direct democracy, the public participates directly in governance and policy making; historically found in small communities such as ancient Athens
• In indirect democracy, the public participates indirectly through its elected representatives; the prevalent form of democracy in the Modern Age
• Contemporary democratization is the transition to a more democratic political regime
• Modernization is associated with better education, weakening of older traditional institutions that stressed authority and hierarchy, greater gender equality, and the rise of a middle class
• The modernization theory states that as societies become better educated and more economically sophisticated, they need and desire greater control over the state to achieve and defend their own interests
• Characteristics of democratization include: free, fair, and competitive elections; government-developed policies and procedures that guarantee due process, accountability, and transparency in decision making; political and civil rights that are possessed by all; independent judiciary; elected government officials who exercise authority over the government; and Rule of Law
• Political change is less likely if political elites believe that it would divest them of wealth; the distribution of wealth may be more important than the fight
• Sources of wealth are not fixed; those in power may no longer see much value in clinging to power, especially if they believe they can take some wealth with them in exchange for stepping aside
• The nature of the resources that fuel economic development can determine the likelihood that a democracy will emerge
• Civil society is a public organization; organized life outside the state
• Civil society can serve as a vehicle for democratization by allowing people to articulate, promote, and defend what is important to them and what they want to see change in their society
• Democratization is more likely where civil society exists because it provides ideas and tools of political action / mobilization that allow small-scale democratic practices to spread
• Modernization resulting from foreign investment, globalization, and trade is an international pressure that leads to democratization
• International pressure or incentives may cause elites to favor democracy
• Civil society can be strengthened by transmission of ideas across borders, including: education, media, and nongovernmental organizations
• Political culture may influence the preference of certain kinds of politics as well as the particular relationship between freedom and equality
• Executive is the branch that carries out the laws and policies of the state (monarch / president)
• The head of state is an executive role that symbolizes and represents the people, both nationally and internationally, embodying and articulating the goals of the regime; duties often include foreign policy and waging war
• The head of government is an executive role that deals with everyday tasks of running the state, such as formulating and executing domestic policy, alongside a cabinet of ministers who are charged with specific policy areas (such as education or agriculture)
• Heads of government are usually referred to as prime ministers; serve as the executive over other ministers
• Legislature is the body in which national politics is considered and debated; charged with making or at least passing legislation
• Bicameral systems are legislatures that contain two houses (liberal democracies); lower house is larger that the upper house
• Unicameral systems are legislatures that contain one house (likely in small countries)
• Judiciary is the system of courts that interprets, defends, and applies the law in the name of the state
• Constitution is a fundamental expression of the regime and the justification for subsequent legislation and the powers of executives, legislatures, and other political actors
• Rule of Law is the sovereignty of law over the people and elected officials; judicial institutions important to uphold law and maintain its adherence to the constitution
• Constitutional Court ensures legislation is compatible with the constitution
• Judicial Review is the mechanism by which courts can review the actions of government and overturn those that violate the constitution
• Through Concrete Review, courts can consider the constitutionality of legislation when a specific court triggers the question of whether or not the case is constitutional
• Through Abstract Review, a constitutional court may rule on legislation without a court case; typically initiated upon request by one or more elected officials
• Apellate is concerned with or dealing with applications for decisions to be reversed
• Parliamentary systems are compromised of (1) primer ministers and their cabinets (other minister) and (2) legislature that elects / removes the primer minister from office
• In parliamentary systems, political power and roles are divided between a head of government and a head of state
• The Prime Minister is elected from legislature and reflected the balance of power between parties; time they serve is uncertain because the parties, not the public, choose them
• Members of the legislature are voted in and out indirect elections and prime ministers usually serve in office for as long as they command the support of their party