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67 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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debating legislature
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floor debate is the central activity; here major issues are addressed and parties gain or lose ground. (ex: British House of Commons)
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committee-based legislature
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most work takes place in committees. There, members transform bills into laws, conduct hearings and scrutinize the executive. (ex American Congress)
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reversionary budget
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the default budget which takes effect should the legislature fail to approve a new one in time
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interpellation
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an enquiry of the government, interrupting normal business, which is followed by a debate and usually a vote on the assembly's satisfaction with the answers given
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types of scrutiny
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questions, interpellation, emergency debates, votes of confidence, committee investigations
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stages of recruitment to the legislature
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population -> eligibles -> aspirants -> candidates -> members of the legislature
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professional politicians
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Weber's distinction of people who live off instead of for politics. Said to form a political class.
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incumbency effect
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the electoral bonus accruing to sitting members in securing re-election.
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open seat
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one in which the existing representative has stood down, creating more contest b/c of no incumbent.
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term limits
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restrict elected politicians to a maximum number of periods in office, or ban re-election without a break.
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political executive
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forms the top tier of the govt. it directs the nation's affairs, supervises the execution of policy, mobilize support for its goals and offers crisis leadership
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presidential government's four features
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1. direct election of the president who steers the government and makes appointments to it
2. fixed terms of offices for the president and the assembly, neither of which can bring down the other 3. no overlap in membership between the executive and the legislature 4. the president serves as head of state |
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presidential power: express powers
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powers explicitly listed in the constitution
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presidential power: implied powers
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powers held to derive from the president's explicit constitutional obligations (ex emergency powers)
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presidential power: statutory powers
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additional powers explicitly granted by Congress
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parliamentary government: 3 main features
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1. governing parties emerge from the assembly and can be dismissed from office by a vote of no confidence
2. the executive is collegial, taking the form of a cabinet in which the prime minister was first among equals. 3. a ceremonial head of state is normally separate from the post of prime minister |
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formateur
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person or party charged by the head of state with initiating negotiations for a coalition
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minimum winning coalition (MWC)
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a government formed by the smallest number of parties which together can secure a parliamentary majority. MWCs are the most common form of party government in post-war Europe.
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election rule
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an agreement among coalition partners that they will call an election if the coalition ends
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constructive vote of no confidence
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requires an assembly to select a new prime minister before it can dispose of the incumbent
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cabinet committees
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small workgroups of full cabinet, established to focus on specific areas such as the budget, legislation or overall strategy.
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semi-presidential government
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sometimes called dual executive. combines an elected president performing political tasks with a prime minister who heads a cabinet accountable to parliament.
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personal rule
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rule based on persons rather than institutions
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vertical accountability
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an actor at one level is overseen by an actor on another level
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horizontal accountability
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oversight operates at the same level
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bureaucracy
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rule by officials
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spoils system
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successful candidates distribute government jobs to those with the foresight to support the winning candidate
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merit system
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public employees are recruited by competitive exam
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unified bureaucracy
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recruitment is to the civil service as a whole, not to a specific job within it. admin work is requiring intelligence and education but not technical knowledge
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departmental bureaucracy
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recruits people with technical backgrounds to specific depts or jobs
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regulatory capture
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when public agencies created to regulate a particular industry come to serve the interests of those they supervise
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ombudsman
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a public official appointed by the legislature to investigate allegations of maladministration in the public sector. (watchdogs)
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bureaucratic authoritarianism
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coined to describe regimes in south america. regimes in which the bureaucracy imposed economic stability under the protection of a military government. repressive of popular movements.
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administrative capacity
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the bureaucracy's ability to address social problems through effective management and implementation of public policy
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nomenklatura
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list of names - a large panel of trusted individuals from which ruling communist parties appointed people to posts in the bureaucracy
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policy
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a broader notion than a decision. at a minimum, a policy covers a bundle of decisions (or non-decisions). more generally, it reflects an intention to make future decisions in accordance with an overall objective.
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stages of the policy process
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initiation (deciding to make a decision) -> formulation (developing concrete proposals) -> implementation (putting the policy into practice) -> evaluation (appraising impact and success) -> review (continue, revise or terminate?)
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cost-benefit analysis
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involves giving a monetary value to every consequence of choosing either option and then selecting the option with the highest net benefit.
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discount rate
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factor by which the expected future benefits of a policy are reduced to estimate their present value.
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garbage-can model of policy formulation
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problems and solutions mixing at random within an organization
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rational model of policy-making
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-goals are set before means are considered
-a good policy is the most appropriate to achieve explicit goals -analysis is comprehensive; all effects of all options are addressed -theory is heavily used |
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incremental model of policy-making
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-goals and means are considered together
-a good policy is one on which all main actors can agree -analysis is selective; the object is acceptable policy, not the best policy -comparison with similar problems is heavily used |
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policy outputs vs policy outcomes
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what government does vs. what government achieves
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delegated legislation
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consists of detailed regulations issued by a relevant department to give effect to primary legislation.
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nightwatchman state
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maintains law and order and protects private property; 19th cent. and earlier
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welfare state
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provides minimum welfare to all citizens
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regulatory state
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sets rules and standards
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dependency ratio
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ratio of the economically dependent part of the population to the employed part. dependents are those who are too young or old to work.
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single-member plurality: first past the post
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the candidate securing the most votes (not necessarily a majority) is elected on the first and only ballot within each single-member district
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absolute majority: alternative vote (AV)
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voters rank candidates. if no candidate wins a majority of first preferences, the bottom candidate is eliminated and his or her votes are redistributed by second preferences
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two-round system
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if no candidate wins a majority on the first ballot, the leading candidates (usually the top 2) face a second, run-off election
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list system
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votes are cast for a party's list of candidates, though in some countries the elector can also express support for individual candidates on the list
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single transferrable vote (STV)
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voters rank candidates in order of preference. any successful candidate needs a set number of votes - the quota. all candidates are elected who exceed this quota on first preferences. Their "surplus" votes are then distributed to the second preferences shown on these ballot papers. When no candidate has reached the quota, the bottom candidate is eliminated and these votes are also transferred.
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mixed member proportional (MMP)
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electors normally have two votes. one is for the district election (usually a plurality) and the other for a PR contest (usually a party list). the two tiers are linked so as to deliver a proportional outcome overall. The party vote determines the number f seats to be won by each party. elected candidates are drawn first from the party's winners in the district contests, topped up as required by candidates from the party list.
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mixed member majoritarian (MMM)
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As for MMP, except that those two tiers are separate, with no mechanism to achieve a proportional result overall.
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Hare quota (for STV)
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total votes / total seats = required quota
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Droop quota (for STV)
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[total valid votes/(seats + 1)] + 1
advantages to Hare quota: -elects more candidates in the first distribution of seats -under Hare quota, possible for group of candidates supported by majority to be elected to minority of seats |
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dual federalism
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national and state tiers retain separate spheres
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cooperative federalism
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tiers cooperate
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subsidiary
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Idea that tasks should be taken up by lowest, simplest tier possible
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relationship with the center - dual system
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formal separation of local and federal
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relationship with the center - fused system
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uniform system of government
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strong bicameralism
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balanced houses
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weak bicameralism
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lower house is more powerful
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reversionary budget
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budget that takes effect if the new budget is not passed
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Internal Controls for Accountability
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Ministerial direction,
Regulators, and Professional standards |
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External Scrutiny for Accountability
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Legislature and judiciary,
Ombudsman – Grievance officer who oversees maladministration, and Interest groups and the mass media |
