Political Parties and Government Structures

Reality perceived through personal experiences, beliefs, and biases.

Reality independent of individual thoughts, existing objectively and perceivable by all.

Avoiding bias or taking sides.

Assuming that the truth lies between two opposing viewpoints.

Power is the ability to influence others through laws and rights, not just physical strength.

A community with the legitimate authority to use physical force within its territory.

Directly controlling the actions of others through force or restriction.

Manipulating the agenda or options available to others, often behind the scenes.

Groups of people with shared political views, organized to influence government.

Burke believed political parties were good, enabling legislatures to work together effectively.

They feared that parties would be too divisive and harmful to the government.

Early Canadian parties emerged as loose coalitions within legislatures.

A structure and organization that supports parties across the entire country.

The public service should reflect the diversity of the Canadian population, meaning it should have a similar representation of different groups based on factors like race, ethnicity, gender, and disability.

Examining the complex factors that influence policy decisions. This includes understanding the ideas, ideologies, values, and power dynamics that shape policy outcomes.

Various elements impacting policy decisions, such as competing interests, power dynamics, and the influence of ideas and ideologies.

The public service should be accountable to the public, meaning they should be transparent, demonstrate legitimacy, and be held responsible for their actions.

A drastic reduction in the size and scope of the public service by firing a large number of employees.

The United States has a federal system with a separation of powers between the three branches of government (executive, legislative, and judicial), a Constitutionally entrenched rights system making it difficult to amend, and no override of legislatures.

Canada has a federal system but with a centralized structure compared to the US. It features a parliamentary system (fusion of powers) where the executive branch is accountable to the legislature, a Constitutionally entrenched rights system making it difficult to amend, and an override clause allowing legislatures to override certain rights.

A system where multiple levels of government (central and regional) share sovereignty and derive their power from the constitution. This means neither level is subordinate to the other.

Changes to the federal system that require the consent of both the central and regional governments.

The United States aimed for less power vested in the federal government, particularly for Southern slave states. In contrast, John A. Macdonald, a key figure in Canadian Confederation, sought more power for the federal government.

An ideology aiming to reshape society by promoting market principles. It emphasizes individual freedom within a market-driven framework, prioritizing economic exchange and individual responsibility.

An ideology that seeks to reshape society through moral principles and traditional values. It emphasizes social order and traditional institutions, often advocating for a strong national defense.

While both strive to remake society, neoliberalism focuses on market rationality and individual freedom within an economic framework. Neoconservatism, on the other hand, prioritizes moral principles, traditional values, and societal order.

A time management method where you work in concentrated bursts (25 minutes) followed by short breaks (5 minutes).

A learning technique where you actively test your knowledge by retrieving information without looking at notes. This strengthens memory.

Electoral systems where voters select multiple candidates from a list, aiming for greater representation of the population and encouraging cooperation between parties.

Proportional representation systems allow for more diverse representation, give more weight to individual votes, and force parties to collaborate to form a government.

Proportional representation systems can be complex and confusing for voters, and government formation through coalition agreements can be unstable or lead to ineffective leadership.

Electoral systems that combine elements of both proportional representation and other systems, like first-past-the-post, to balance representation and stability.

A system used in the United States to elect the president, where electors chosen by each state cast votes based on the popular vote within that state.

The Electoral College system emerged from debates surrounding slavery, where Southern states wanted enslaved people counted for representation, leading to the Three-Fifths Compromise.

A compromise reached during the Constitutional Convention where enslaved people were counted as three-fifths of a person for the purposes of representation in the House of Representatives.

The Electoral College, while not directly protecting slavery, disproportionately favors smaller, rural states with predominantly White populations, giving less voting power to Black and Latino voters often concentrated in larger states.

Landmark legislation that outlawed discriminatory voting practices and aimed to ensure equal voting rights for all citizens, specifically targeting measures that disenfranchised Black voters.

Despite the Voting Rights Act, ongoing efforts have sought to restrict voting through measures like voter ID laws and changes to voting procedures, often targeting marginalized communities.