Political Science 1020E Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Liberal Democracy, Advocacy Group, Elite
28 Jan 2016
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Document Summary
Elections: joseph schumpeter democracy is a means of filling public office through competition for the public"s vote. Democracy means only that people have the right to accept or refuse who rules them: key element of democracy. Functions of elections: bottom up view mechanism that holds politicians accountable. Forces them to represent the people, influence policy etc: top down view a way for political elite to exercise control over the public. Build legitimacy and shape public opinion: there are 7 central functions of elections, recruiting politicians the main way that people enter politics. Results in politicians being charismatic, strong speakers, good looking etc: not necessarily skills for an effective government member. Elections usually aren"t used to fill highly skilled positions: making governments influence the formation of governments. Can be direct (u. s, france, venezuela) where executive is directly elected. Can be indirect where elections influence formations based on majorities: provide representation a means to channel public demands to the government.
