Chapter 10
Elections
Elections
Allows the mass of people to have a say in the
election of leaders (democracy in particular)
Allows the state to mobilize the people and build
support for the state by participating in the process
of government
Elections
Way to build support
Can provide referendums (way for people to choose
directly whether a policy proposal should pass or not -- people decide policy instead of leaders)
Electoral Systems
1.
2.
A legal system for making voting and choosing
elected officials
Two types of electoral systems:
Single-Member-District Plurality System (SMDP)
Proporational Representation System (PR)
SMDP
State divided into districts usually equal in population
One representative is elected from each district to be
a member of the state’s legislative body
Whoever gets a plurality (ie, largest number) of the
votes wins the seat
A single member is elected just as name indicates
SMDP
United States and Canada use modified versions of
this
These systems tend to be limited to Great Britain and
her former colonies
PR System
Used by most states
The representation of political parties in
parliament/legislative body is in proportion to the
votes they win
If Party A wins 25% of votes, then A gets 25% of seats
in the legislative body
Electoral Participation
Varies wildly from state to state
Some states mandate that electoral participation is
required (example: Austria)
In United States, voter turnout is higher during
Presidential election (2004—about 60%)
Paradox of Voting
Idea that for a rational and self-interested voter, the
costs of voting will often exceed the expected
benefits.
0
