Political Systems and Definitions
104 flashcards by MentisLibrary
Regime types and ideologies, the three branches and how they check each other, constitutions and rights, electoral systems, legislative procedure, and the vocabulary of international relations, for civics and introductory political science students.
- Democracy
- Rule by the citizens, who hold political power either directly or through representatives they elect and can remove.
- Autocracy
- Government in which one person holds unchecked power and is not accountable to voters, courts or a legislature.
- Oligarchy
- Rule by a small group who hold power for their own benefit, whether through wealth, family, military rank or party position.
- Federalism
- A system in which power is constitutionally divided between a central government and regional governments, each with its own protected sphere.
- Socialism
- A family of theories holding that the major means of production should be owned or controlled collectively rather than privately.
- Capitalism
- An economic system in which productive property is privately owned and goods, labour and capital are allocated through markets and prices.
- Totalitarianism
- A system that seeks total control over public and private life, including belief, through an official ideology, mass surveillance and terror.
- Theocracy
- Government in which religious authorities rule, or in which religious law is the supreme law of the state.
- Meritocracy
- A system in which position and power are allocated by demonstrated ability, usually measured by examination or performance.
- Plutocracy
- Rule by the wealthy, in which economic power converts directly into political power.
- Impeachment
- A formal charge of serious misconduct brought against a public officeholder by a legislature, which may lead to removal.
- Filibuster
- Prolonging debate to delay or block a vote in a legislative chamber that has no strict limit on speaking time.
- Gerrymandering
- Drawing electoral district boundaries to favour one party or group, usually by packing opponents into a few districts or splitting them across many.
- Veto
- The power of an officeholder to reject a measure passed by a legislature and stop it becoming law.
- Embargo
- A government ban on trade with a particular country, either across the board or in named goods.
- Sanctions
- Penalties imposed on a state, organisation or individual to force a change in behaviour without going to war.
- Referendum
- A direct vote by the electorate on a single question, whose result may be binding or advisory.
- Sovereignty
- Supreme authority within a territory, with no higher power inside it and formal equality with other states outside it.
- Constitution
- The body of fundamental rules that establishes a state's institutions, distributes power between them, and sets limits on what government may do.
- Caucus
- A meeting of party members who gather in person to debate and then select candidates or set policy.
- Incumbent
- The person currently holding an office, especially when standing for re-election to it.
- Amendment
- A formal change to a constitution, normally requiring a higher threshold than ordinary legislation.
- Direct democracy
- Citizens vote on the laws and policies themselves instead of delegating the decision to a representative.
- Representative democracy
- Citizens elect officials to make law on their behalf and hold them to account at the next election.
- Liberal democracy
- Elected government combined with constitutional limits on what that government may do: protected rights, independent courts, and a free press.
- Republic
- A state whose head of state holds office by election or appointment rather than by inheritance.
- Monarchy
- Rule by a single hereditary sovereign, usually a king, queen or emperor, who holds office for life.
- Constitutional monarchy
- A monarchy in which the sovereign reigns as head of state while an elected government actually governs, bound by a constitution.
- Absolute monarchy
- A monarchy in which the sovereign holds unlimited power, unchecked by a constitution or an elected body.
- Dictatorship
- Rule by a leader or small group who seized or retained power outside normal constitutional means and govern without effective limits.