Democracy & Origins
Democracy comes from two greek words, demos (meaning common people) and what?..
Kratos (meaning power or rule)
What is civil society?
Organized life outside of the state.
What are the three branches of government?
Executive, legislative, and judicial.
What is a referendum?
A direct public vote on a particular policy issue.
Why do poltical parties form?
To gather diverse groups and ideas under a ideological mandate.
What are the three core components of democracy?
Participation, competition, and liberty.
Name one example of a civil society organization.
Student organizations, religious organizations, labor unions, enviornmental groups, or community organizations.
What is a bicameral legislature?
A legislature with two houses.
What is an initiative?
Citizens propose a new law or policy and collect signatures to put it to a public vote.
What two things do polticial parties provide that help make majority rule possible?
Candidates and agendas.
Which ancient civilization developed direct democracy in Athens?
Ancient Greece.
What is collective action?
People working together to achieve a shared political or social goal.
Which branch interprets laws?
The judicial branch.
What is the main difference between civil rights and civil liberties?
Civil rights promote equality. Civil liberties protect individual freedoms.
In a plurality SMD system, how does a candidate win?
The candidate with the most votes wins.
What 1215 document established that the king was not above the law?
The Magna Carta.
True or False: Having a civil society automatically means a country is democratic.
False.
A country has a head of state who mainly preforms ceremonial duties, while political leadership is left to political parties rather than directly elected by the public. Which model of democracy is this, and what feature of that system led you to that answer.
Paraliamentary system.
The head of state is ceremonial, and the public doesn't directly elect leaders. Leadership is left to the political parties.
A government passes a law that treats one grouo differently and denies them the same legal protection given to others. Which concept is being violated: civil rights or civil liberties. Explain.
Civil rights, because civil rights focuses on equality and equal treatment under the law. Including, protection against discrimination.
In the UK's 2019 election, the conservatives recieved 44% of the vote but 56% of the seats, while the SNP recieved a much smaller share of the national vote but won a large number of seats.
What feature of the electoral system helps explain this outcome?
Plurality single member district (SMD) voting. Because each district awards its seat to the candiate with the most votes, where a party's supporters are concentrated geographically can effect how many seats it wins.
How did Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, and England contribute to modern democracy?
Greece introduced political participation. Rome influenced republicanism and representation. England gave us the Magna Carta and the limits on royal power.
How can a civil society help strengthen a democracy?
It allows citizens to organize, express intrests, influence policy, and hold leaders accountable.
Three countries have the following structures: Country A has a separate head of state and head of government offices; Country B combines both roles into one executive; Country C has a directly elected president who shares power with an indirectly elected prime minister. Match each country to the correct democratic model.
Country A: Parliamentary
Country B: Presidential
Country C: Semi-Presidental
A citizen is legally allowed to express their politcial opinions, but the government attempts to restrict that expression because they disagree with what the citizen is saying. Which concept is directly involved? Explain.
Civil liberties. Civil liberties protects individual freedoms from government interference, such as freedom of speech.
Imagine two countries have indentical voting percentages for five politcial parties. Country A, only the candiate with the most votes in each district wins a seat. In country B, parties recieve seats roughly according to their share of the vote, allowing smaller parties to enter the legislature.
What electoral systems are these?
Country A = Puluralty SMD
Country B = Proportional Representation (PR)