Introduction
In the Australian political system, we are considered to have a representative government where citizens elect members of Parliament to represent them (Australian Politics, 2017). Representative government allows for those elected to debate and make laws on behalf of Australian citizens, instead of them voting directly on these matters (AEC, 2017). The purpose of this essay is to examine how the Australian federal electoral system does not facilitate representative government. This concern involves the two Houses of Parliament, including the House of Representatives and the Senate, in addition to political parties in which have been found to impact on representative government. To examine to which extent this impact is, information
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From this data, it can be interpreted that the major parties, including Liberal and Labour are viewed in favour of the minor parties. This leads us to believe that political parties ‘brand names’ are in fact a impact on how people vote due to how well-known it is.
Do minor & micro parties impact upon representative government and in which house of parliament?
The two biggest parties, also known as the micro parties in Australia are the Liberal Party and the Labor Party. Smaller parties, also called minor parties, includes the Nationals, the Australian Greens, along with others (Singleton, Warhurst, 2013). Political parties impact upon representative government and the electoral system enables a diversity of political views. For example, the Senate has more political diversity because of its electoral system compared to the House of Representatives but it has a massive impact upon the representative
This paper discusses about the recent case, Rowe v Electoral Commissioner [2010] 273 ALR 1 (hereafter Rowe), related with the notions of representative government and representative democracy. Through the discussion of the case, this paper also analyses its significance in Australia.
These parties are two of the oldest, biggest and most well structured Australian political parties. They are only parties to have held power in the House of Rep’s in Australia. They are rivals and their philosophies are almost directly opposed to each other but they share many similarities concerning organisation, structure, achievements and tactics.
In this essay I will argue that British General Elections should be conducted using a system of Proportional Representation. First, I will argue that the system would be more democratic as every vote that is cast would be represented and this ...
Party is an inevitable feature of the democracy and it is defined as ‘an autonomous group of citizens having the purpose of making nominations and contesting elections in the hope of gaining control over governmental power through the capture of public offices and the organization of the government’ (Caramani, 2011, p.220). Parties are ubiquitous in modern political systems and they perform a number of functions, they are: coordination, contesting elections, recruitment, and representation (Caramani, 2011). Political parties are the product of the parliamentary and electoral game, and party systems reflect the social oppositions that characterize society when parties first appear (Coxall et al., 2011).
For a democratic country to thrive, they must have a proper electoral system in producing the party to oversee our government. Since its inception in 1867, Canada has been using the first past the post system during elections to decide their leading party. Although we have been using this system for an extended duration of time, the FPTP system is flawed and should be changed. The goal of this paper is to prove the effectiveness of shifting to more of a proportional system, while also exposing the ineptness of Canada’s current system. With other methods advancing and little change of the first past the post system, this system is becoming predated. A variation of the proportional electoral system is key because it empowers voters, increases voter turnout, and creates a more diverse environment. Canada should adopt a more proportionate electoral system at the federal level if we wish to expand democracy.
This is issue has recently come back into the spotlight due to an interview with the current Australian of the year, Simon McKeon. In the interview, he urged Australian’s to bring up the republican debate suggesting that now is the time to become a republic. This has sparked many people coming forward and debating the issue.
"There is a reason for the country to embrace mandatory voting, and it may be the most compelling: democracy cannot be strong if citizenship is weak," _William A. Galtson_. Mandatory voting, or compulsory voting, is a law wherein citizens are required to vote, or suffer the consequence. Australia has had compulsory voting since putting it into effect in 1924. "The turnout of Australian elections has never fallen below 90 percent since the introduction of compulsory voting in 1924," _Australian Electoral Commission_. Achieving over 90 percent of the citizens voting for nearly a century shows that mandatory voting is working in regard to getting people to vote. Governments should have mandatory voting because the people will educate themselves
Both parties will tend to be broad-based and attempt to target as many groups as possible: this is because any smaller parties will not stand a chance in competing in most districts, hence causing parties to consolidate in order to be viable (ACE Project, 2012). This analysis by the ACE Project shows how larger parties may tend to squeeze out smaller ones, and cause smaller parties to be excluded relative to their actual level in government, hindering their ability to act on a national stage, providing a normative basis for their exclusion in Canadian
However, the proposed systems must be thoroughly examined for their compatibility with Canada’s needs and their ability to resolve the issues outlined in this paper. From distortion in representation to Western alienation and to making the voices of minorities heard, the new system must also ensure that Parliament fulfills its role in representing, legislating, and holding the government. More importantly, after the current government abandoned its promise on electoral reform, it is important for researchers and future governments to build on the knowledge acquired by the Special Committee on Electoral Reform as well as previous experiences of the provinces with electoral
Mackerras, M., & McAllister, I. (1992). Compulsory Voting, Party Stability and Electoral Advantage in Australia. Electoral Studies , 18(2), 217-233. Retrieved from http://journals1.scholarsportal.info.proxy.bib.uottawa.ca/details.xqy?uri=/02613794/v18i0002/217_cvpsaeaia.xml
Tanguay, Brian, and Steven Bittle. "Parliament as a Mirror to the Nation: Promoting Diversity in Representation through Electoral Reform." Canadian Issues (2005): 61-63. ProQuest. Web. 20 Mar. 2012.
The second consideration is that whilst voters are offered a great deal of choice at constituency level, the vast majority of these parties are far too small to have any great impact on the political system and can therefore be considered irrelevant on a national scale and have only regional significance.
With an understanding of the theoretical links between economic structures, relations of production, and political systems that protect economic structures in society this case study examines media as a contributor to democracy in Australia as well as a business with economic objectives. This section will provide a short explanation of Fairfax media history and position in 2012 prior to explaining Gina Rinehart’s role in the company. The print sector in Australia has historically exhibited relatively high levels of concentration, dominated by News Corp Australia, Fairfax and APN. The Australian print news media have experienced a long-term trend of a decrease in titles and owners. According to Geoffrey Craig, ‘in 1923 there were as many as
In representative government, parties are often found. Perhaps the most prevalent danger in a party system is a party split, which paralyzes government just as much as a divergence of executive, legislative, and judicial powers in government.
Introduction Political party manifestos are a common feature in most liberal democracies all over the world. Manifestos are a vehicle through which parties sell their policies and ideologies to the wider electoral community. The content of the electoral manifestos reflects how political parties plan to address issues of national concern (Chunga 2014, p.10). In countries with strong democracies and high literacy levels, manifestos are a crucial component in wooing voter support for parties and candidates. Since the dawn of multiparty democracy in Malawi in 1993, political party manifestos have become a key feature when parties and candidates campaign for political office.