When classifying governments, you
can ask five questions to help you
classify them:
1. Who can participate?
2. How is power distributed between the central
and local governments?
3. How are the legislative, executive, and judicial
branches structured?
4. What is the relationship between the
legislative and executive branch?
5. What type of electoral systems do they have?
1. Who can participate?
• The two classifications are authoritarian or
democratic
2. How is power distributed between
the central and local governments?
Decentralized
• Federal systems of
government are
decentralized.
Centralized
• Unitary systems are
centralized.
Federal Systems
•
•
•
•
Advantages
Protects ethnic, linguistic, or
religious minorities.
Serves as a check on
ambitious rulers and
protects markets and citizen
freedoms
Allows for experimentation.
Citizens may choose the
policy that best fits them at
the regional level.
Disadvantages
• Limited equality because
citizens get different
treatments and benefits
from different local
governments.
• Encourages nationalregional divisions, think the
Civil War
Unitary Systems
Advantages
• Are in a better position to
redistribute resources from
richer regions to poorer
regions (thus creating more
equality)
• More efficient
Disadvantages
• Local needs are often
overlooked by the central
government.
Sometimes, leaders of unitary
systems voluntarily choose to
decentralize power
• Termed Devolution
• UK with Scotland and Wales
• To pacify political rivals (intra- or interparty rivalry;
devolution in the United Kingdom as an example).
• To prevent revolution.
• Ethnic/regional/national cleavages.
• To increase legitimacy.
• To increase political participation.
• Political efficiency (such as distribution of services and
tax collection).
• To increase accountability of local leaders (e.g., China)
3. How are the legislative, executive,
and judicial branches structured?
Prime Minister and President
Types of Executive Systems
Presidential
Parliamentary
• Typically, a single chief
executive who performs
ceremonial and political roles.
• Both Head of State and Head
of Government
• Terms of office are fixed.
• Presidents typically have veto
power.
• Separation of powers and
checks and balances
• Typically, a split chief executive
• Head of State, symbolizes people
• Head of Government, runs the
State and directs activities
• The influence of the executive
rests almost primarily with their
influence over the legislature.
• Terms of office are determined by
the maximum term for the
parliament.
• The veto power is used much less
frequently, if at all.
Nations with Prime Minister Systems
Red-pure systems
Yellow and green—adapted systems
Shinzo Abe- Japan
Manmohan Singh - India
David Cameron
David Cameron- UK
Benjamin NetanyahuIsrael
Presidential Systems--blue
Enrique Pen͂ a NietoMexico
Barack Obama
Dilma RousseffBrazil
Hassan Rouhani- US
Goodluck JonathanNigeria
Similarities Between Presidential and
Parliamentary Systems
• Chosen through competitive party structures.
• This often leads to smoother transitions of
power.
• Primarily responsible for foreign policy
decisions.
• Perform system functions… for example, a
child’s first encounter with politics is usually
through a president or prime minster.
Comparing Cabinets
PRESIDENTIAL CABINETS
• The president selects
cabinet members and,
sometimes, must go
through legislative approval.
• Role is limited.
PARLIAMENTARY CABINETS
• The entire cabinet is subject to
the legislature and the prime
minister (PM) is just the “first
among equals.”
• The PM must maintain the
confidence of the parliamentary
majority so they must consult the
legislature when choosing a
cabinet.
• There are distinct differences in
how a cabinet is formed
depending on whether there is a
two-party or multi-party system
Advantages of Parliamentary Systems
Pros
• Efficiency in passing
legislation
• Clearer accountability
Cons
• Instability, a vote of no
confidence can be called at
any time
• Concentration of power and
hasty decisions
• Indirect election of prime
minister
Advantages of a Presidential System
Pros
• A check of majority rule
• National mandate
Cons
• Difficulty in removing an
unpopular president
• Gridlock
• Creeping authoritarianism
Bureaucracies
• The bureaucracy has almost exclusive control
over implementing laws and regulations.
• Executives and bureaucracies mutually depend
on each other.
• Executives need bureaucracies to carry out their
policies and make decisions, while bureaucracies
need guidance, direction, and resources from the
executive.
• Examples of mutual cooperation: creating
budgets and reorganization of administrative
capabilities.
Bureaucracies
• Bureaucracies are often called “quasi-legislative”
because they often have experts clarify legislation.
• Bureaucracies can also perform “quasi-judicial”
functions because they ensure laws are followed. They
monitor and penalize citizens or organizations that do
not follow their laws.
• Laws are, typically, general so implementing and
enforcing policies often depends on the interpretations
of the bureaucracy. They also have some leeway as to
how much they want to enforce certain laws.
Comparative Bureaucracies
• Democracies have
bureaucracies with
discretionary power that
allow them to make some
decisions that affect policies
• Bureaucrats are usually
appointed, not elected so
they are a source of
stability.
• Usually earned through
merit vs. patronage.
Although patronage exists.
• Authoritarian regimes have
almost complete control
over bureaucracies
business.
• Bureaucrats are more likely
to get their jobs through
patronage (loyalty and
favors) than through merit.
Legislative Bodies
• Assemblies vary in size and organization.
Some have one house (unicameral) and some
have two (bicameral).
• Are the two houses equal in strength, is there
an upper and lower house?
• Bicameral adds an extra layer of checks and
balances on a system
Legislative Bodies
• All assemblies have committee structures
• Functions of assemblies include deliberating,
debating, and voting on policies that come
before them. Their decisions about these
policies carry the force of law.
• Other functions include controlling public
spending (power of the purse) and
appointment powers.
• Assemblies are, in theory, representatives of
the people. The idea that officials should
mirror the characteristics of the citizens as
much as possible is known as descriptive
representation.
Judicial Bodies
• Constitutional Courts are the fourth type of
government body (bureaucracy, legislative,
executive branches).
• The constitutional court is the highest judicial
body that rules on constitutionality of laws
(judicial review) and other government actions.
• Judicial power has grown over the past century
because of the desire to protect human rights.
• Judicial Independence: the degree the court is
from the influence of the other branches
Code vs. Common Law
Common Law
Code Law (Civil Law)
• Sometimes known as
• Based on
Continental European law
precedent
• The central source of law
• Judges modify
that is recognized as
the system over
authoritative is codifications
time with their
in a constitution or statute
decisions
passed by legislature, to
• Originated in
amend a code.
the UK
• Only legislative enactments
(rather than legal
• UK, US, Nigeria
precedents, as in common
in the South and
law) are considered legally
at the federal
binding.
level, Hong Kong
• China & Russia
•
•
•
•
•
•
Religious Law
Sharia Law
The moral code
and religious
law of Islam
Based on Koran
Secondary
status for
women
Lots of capital
Crimes
Iran, North of
Nigeria
4. What is the relationship between
the legislative and executive branch?
PRESIDENTIAL
• Branches separate,
independent, and co-equal.
• Chosen independently of
legislature, fixed term, and
broad powers not
controlled by legislative
branch.
• Separation of Powers and
Checks and balances
• Mostly located in Western
Hemisphere.
Parliamentary
• Executive (Prime Minister,
Premier, President) is from
legislative branch.
• Leader from majority party
and chosen from legislative
body.
• Subject to control of
Legislature
• Majority of governments in
the world have parliamentary
government.
Vote of Confidence
• A vote of confidence may occur in a parliamentary system
when the majority party in the parliament disagrees with a
policy or action of the prime minister.
• If the majority party and the prime minister are in a
disagreement on an issue, the prime minster is expected to
dissolve the parliament and call for new elections.
• If citizens vote for a different party to become the majority
party, then a successful vote of confidence has taken place.
• DISCUSSION: What would have to happen for a vote of NO
confidence to take place?
Chicken Little: What do you mean the government if falling?
Vote of no confidence
•
•
•
•
•
•
Is a statement or vote which states that a person in a superior position - be it
government, managerial, etc. - is no longer deemed fit to hold that position.
This may be based on said person falling short in some respect, failing to carry out
obligations, or making choices that other members feel are detrimental.
As a parliamentary motion, it demonstrates to the head of state that the elected
parliament no longer has confidence in (one or more members of) the
appointed government.
A censure motion is different from a no-confidence motion. "No Confidence" leads
to compulsory resignation of the council of ministers whereas "Censure" is meant
to show disapproval and does not result in the resignation of ministers.
The censure motion can be against an individual minister or a group of ministers,
but the no-confidence motion is directed against the entire council of ministers
In the Westminster system, the defeat of a supply bill (one that concerns the
spending of money) automatically requires the resignation of the government or
dissolution of Parliament, much like a non-confidence vote, since a government
that cannot spend money is hamstrung. This is called loss of supply.
5. What type of electoral systems do
they have?
• 1. Single Member Districts (SMD). AKA
“winner-take-all”, “first past the post (FPTP)”
• Follows plurality election rules
• US’s system
• 2. Proportional representation (PR) is where the
nation is divided into a few (or one), large districts,
called multimember districts (MMD), and
competing parties offer a list of candidates rather
than a single candidate.
• The number of representatives in the legislature
is proportional to the percentage of votes it gets.
► Many nations have a minimum threshold of
voters (3-5%)
You must copy this chart in your notes
Advantages of PR Electoral Systems
Pros
• Minority interests
represented
• Women are more likely to
elected to office
• Emphasis on ideas over
personality
Cons
• Too many small parties with
disproportionate
importance
• PR systems facilitate
extremist parties
• It can be hard to form
coalitions and have stable
governments
How would a proportional
representation with a
multimember district system look
in the US?
• The whole nation would be a district and you
would vote for a party (there would be around
5 of them) and not a candidate.
• There is a chance the person in the House
would not be from your area.
House of Representatives New
Look
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
435 seats in play
Election results:
Business Party 25% 109 seats-> 117 seats
Evangelical Party 23% 100 seats-> 108 seats
Tea Party 4% 0 seats
Working Class Party 35% 152 seats-> 163 seats
African American Party 10% 44 seats-> 47 seats
Green Party 3% 0 seats
– 5% threshold requirement
How would the government form?
•
•
•
•
•
Working Class Party 25% 109 seats-> 117 seats
Evangelical Party 23% 100 seats-> 108 seats
Business Party 35% 152 seats-> 163 seats
African American Party 10% 44 seats-> 47 seats
A coalition would form between two or more
groups
• The Business and Evangelical Parties would form
a governing coalition and the top candidate on
the Business ticket would be the new PM with
cabinet full of people from both parties
Mixed-Member Proportional
Representation Explained
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QT0IsdoSXU&safe=active
Political Parties
Advantages to a 2 Party System (Comes from SMD FPTP):
• There is a closer relationship between representatives
and constituencies
• Governments are more stable
• The two-party system is more efficient at governing
and lawmaking than a multiparty system
• The two-party system simplifies voters’ decisions
• The two-party system promotes a greater consensus.
Multiparty Systems
• Multiparty systems (Come from MMD PR) have a
combinations of parties,
voter support, and election laws that ensure that no
single party wins a legislative majority.
► Advantages:
• The multiparty system provides representation for a
greater number of ethnic groups
• Parties are more accountable
• Parties are more representative of different divisions in
society.
Single Party System
Sometimes, a single party system emerges for a variety
of reasons:
• A revolution or coup that installs a single party.
(Russian Revolution)
• Emergence of a charismatic leader
• An economic crisis that leads citizens to unify around
a single leader/
• party.
• Constitutional imposition of a single party (NAZI Party
in Germany)
• An external threat that leads citizens to unify around
a single party.
• Ethnic/religious fragmentation.
• Mexico once had this method
► Advantages:
• Creates stability by enacting uniform policies
• More efficient
• Acts with a single voice
• Unites different ethnicities into one group.
Parliamentary System
Presidential System
Legislative Branch
relationship to the
Chief Executive
Chief Executive
(Government
Head)
Head of State
Election periods
Political Parties
Examples
.
Legislative
Branch
Relationship
with Chief
Executive
Parliamentary System
Presidential System
Parliament elected by voters.
The majority party in
Parliament chooses the
prime minister.
Congress elected by voters.
Legislative and
executive functions are
separate.
Chief Executive Prime minister who heads
(Government
council of ministers, or
Head)
"Cabinet"
President, elected by
voters, nominates
cabinet members.
Head of State
President is head of state.
Often a constitutional monarch.
Legislatures often choose a
ceremonial president, who
acts as head of state.
Election Periods Prime minister can call new
elections.
Held at fixed intervals.
Political Parties
Often a multiparty system.
Usually a two-party system
Government is formed by a
with third parties holding
ruling coalition of cooperating
marginal power.
parties.
Examples
Israel, Great Britain, and her
former colonies, such as
India, Japan.
The United States, Mexico,
Nigeria and Brazil.
PART THREE (CONTINUED):
ELECTORAL SYSTEMS & LINKAGE
INSTITUTIONS
“Our political institutions work remarkably well. They are designed to clang
against each other. The noise is democracy at work.” -- Michael Novak
(American philosopher)
Electoral Systems
• Rules that decide how votes are
– Cast
– Counted
– Translated into seats in a legislature
Electoral Systems (FPTP)
• First Past the Post (FPTP), Plurality, Winner Take All
– Winner must get more votes than anyone else
– Does NOT require a majority to win*
– Single member districts (SMD)
• Encourages large, broad-based parties**
– Why?
Electoral Systems (PR)
• Plurality systems encourage large, broad-based parties
because…
• no matter how many people run in a district, the person with
the largest # of votes wins
• this encourages parties to become larger, spreading their
“umbrellas” to embrace more voters
• Parties without big groups of voters supporting them have
little hope of winning
• The Problems with First Past the Post Voting Explained
- YouTube
Electoral Systems
• Proportional Representation (PR)
– Creates multi-member districts
• More than one legislative seat in each district
– Ballots are cast for a party, not an individual
• Open vs closed list
– Percentage of
votes a party gets
determines # of
seats
– Encourages
multiple parties
Electoral Systems (PR)
•Discussion Question: Why do PR Electoral
Systems encourage a multi-party system?
•Pure form encourages a large # of small parties
because they have a good chance of getting
some of their candidates elected
•This could lead to high # of parties with 1 seat
(1%), so most set a threshold
•Threshold – minimum % of vote that a party
must receive in order to secure even one seat
in the legislature
Electoral Systems
•Discussion Question: What are the advantages
of PR Electoral Systems?
1. Minority interests are represented
2. Women are more likely to be elected to
office
3. Emphasis on ideas over personalities
•Discussion Question: What are the
disadvantages of PR Electoral Systems?
1. Too many small parties with disproportionate
Electoral Systems
• Mixed system
– Combines first past
the post &
proportional
– Some # of seats are
single-member &
some are
proportional
– Mixed-Member
Proportional
Representation
Explained -
Types of Elections
• Election of public officials
• Referendum
– Votes on policy issues
– Examples?
– Plebiscite
• A non-binding vote to gauge
public opinion on an issue
• Initiative
– Vote on a policy initiated by
the people
Linkage Institutions
• Connect (“link”) the government to its citizens
– Political parties
– Interest groups
– Media
Linkage Institutions – Political
Parties
• Political Parties
– Functions?
• One-Party System
– Communist States
• One-Party Dominant System
– Mexico during most of 20th cent
(PRI domination)
– Russia (United Russia)
Linkage Institutions – Political
Parties
• Two-party system
– The most rare system
• Two-and-a-Half Party System?
– Third party that influences which of two
major parties get in power
• Multi-party systems
– Most common
– Found in parliamentary systems commonly
Interest Groups
• Organizations of like-minded people
– Want to influence & shape public policy
– Often have a great deal in common with political
parties
• Discuss: How are interest groups different
from political parties?
Interest Groups
• Differences:
• Parties influence govt primarily through the
electoral process (run candidates). Interest
groups often support candidates, but do not
run their own candidates.
• Parties generate and support a broad
spectrum of policies; interest groups support
one or a few related policies.
Interest Groups
• Evaluate in terms of how much autonomy
they have
– Authoritarian (“transmission belts”)
– Democracies
• Pluralism
• Corporatism
• Pluralism
– Power is split
among many
groups
Interest Groups
• Corporatism
– Fewer groups compete, usually one for each
interest sector (labor, ag)
• Two Types:
• State Corporatism
– State determines which groups are brought in
• Neocorporatism
– Interest groups take the lead and dominate the
state
Interest Group Strength: Autonomy
From
the
State
Less Autonomy
More Autonomy
Interest
Groups as
“Transmission
Belts”
No autonomy
From the state
Corporatism
Interest
Group
Pluralism
State and
interest group
autonomy
mixed
Autonomy
from
the state
Free Answers and Hints
•
•
•
•
7 DO NOT PICK B
8A
12 C
14 D
President and Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe
Manmohan Singh
David Cameron
Benjamin Netanyahu
Origins of Prime Minister
• Robert Walpole, 1721
– De facto
• King George
– Absenteeism
– No interest
– No English!
Modern Prime Minister system
• Benjamin Disraeli
– 1868
– 1874-1880
• Adopted as Official Title
in 1905
• “First among equals…”
Chairman or Chief?
• Chairman—facilitator of government
• Chief—forceful leader of government, leader
of policy agenda
Presidential Systems--blue
Enrique Pen͂ a Nieto
Barack Obama
Dilma Rouseff
Goodluck Jonathan
Hassan Rouhani
Origins of Presidential System
Hamilton’s Federalist Papers
67-77
Federalist Number 69
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Four year term, elected not hereditary
Limited length of term
Can be removed through impeachment
Congress can override veto
Commander-in-chief only of those in service
Can’t dissolve Congress
Treaties must be approved by Senate
In short, a president like the governor of New
York, not like a king
Federalist Number 70
• Need for energy in the executive
• “a feeble executive implies feeble execution of
the government”
• Unity in the executive
• Limited length of terms
• Adequate support
• Competent powers
• But safety against a tyrant
Clerk or Steward
Richard Neustadt
• [Theodore Roosevelt] took the view that the President as a
"steward of the people" should take whatever action
necessary for the public good unless expressly forbidden by
law or the Constitution." I did not usurp power," he wrote,
"but I did greatly broaden the use of executive power.“
whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/theodoreroosevelt
• Taft recognized that his techniques would differ from those of
his predecessor. Unlike Roosevelt, Taft did not believe in the
stretching of Presidential powers. He once commented that
Roosevelt "ought more often to have admitted the legal way
of reaching the same ends.“
whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/williamhowardtaft
Churchill and FDR
Bush, Blair, and Iraq
Obama and Peña Nieto
Obama and Netanyahu
Legislative
Branch
Parliamentary System
Presidential System
Parliament elected by voters.
The majority party in
Parliament chooses the
prime minister.
Congress elected by voters.
Legislative and
executive functions are
separate.
Chief Executive Prime minister who heads
(Government
council of ministers, or
Head)
"Cabinet"
President, elected by
voters, nominates
cabinet members.
Head of State
Often a constitutional monarch.
Legislatures often choose a
ceremonial president, who
acts as head of state.
President is head of state.
Elections
Prime minister can call new
elections.
Held at fixed intervals.
Political Parties
Often a multiparty system.
Usually a two-party system
Government is formed by a
with third parties holding
ruling coalition of cooperating
marginal power.
parties.
Examples
Israel, Great Britain, and her
former colonies, such as
India, Japan.
The United States, Mexico,
Nigeria and Brazil.
Presidential System Advantages
•
•
•
•
Separation of Powers/Checks and Balances
Direct Mandate
Executive authority/decisive authority
Stability
Presidential System Disadvantages
• Independent power can lead to
authoritarianism
• Separation of Powers/Gridlock
• Difficulty in leadership change
Prime Minister System Advantages
• Quicker Legislative Action
• Collective Cabinet Authority—diversity in
leadership
• Flexibility in Change of Power—votes of no
confidence
• Resistance to authoritarianism
Prime Minister System Disadvantages
• Indirect election of prime minister
• No separation of powers—executive authority
less checked
• No single executive—first among equals
• One party dominance
• Potential instability
•
•
•
•
•
Are in a better position
to redistribute resources
from richer regions to
poorer regions (thus
creating more equality)