Political Participation 04 10 2013 Assumptions About Participation in the American Democracy The more citizens participate the better the democracy T F runs more efficiently but not necessarily better Participation is natural citizens wants to participate F The voter is knowledgeable about the issue candidates F Public opinion matters T Public Opinion ideas views expressed by taxpayers voters majority w strong opinions sways legislators decision makers who will be held accountable at election In democracies public opinions legitimacy lies w gov s accountability to the voters Public opinion easier to ignore when divided Public opinion its influence can be hard to measure Its effect is maximized when o Citizens hold actual preferences on issues o Public opinion is stable o Is lopsided in a particular direction o Is felt intensely o The issue it revolves around is salient Elections Another method by which citizens participate They give polls their most important justifications In democracies elections are the means used to decide who rules what policies are pursued In dictatorships they are just theater Limitations of Elections If public opinion is ill defined elected officials get mixed signals Advantage of incumbents Sometimes obscured differences b t candidates platforms Candidates make promises they cannot keep Politicians frequently say one thing do another Electoral Systems Modern democracies use two electoral systems for elections o Winner Takes All Systems Used in the U S Only on representative is elected from each electoral district The electoral district differs depending on the office For U S Senate it is the state as one unit For the House it is the congressional district in question as one unit For President it is the state as one unit o Proportional Representation Systems European countries Elitist Theory of Democracy theory that a small clique of indivs a power elite at the highest levels of gov industry etc exercise political power for their own interests ordinary citizens have almost no influence on gov policy Political Parties groups of indivs whose purpose is to select nominate support candidates for elected office Strive to operate a gov dictate public policy in pursuit of the party s goals The Role of Political Parties in the U S U S has a two party system of gov Third parties are present but American political scene is dominated by Republican Democratic Parties Current system of elections allow this condition to exist One party domination systems invite official interference in elections including ballot box stuffing other blatantly unfair practices o Different from authoritarian one party systems b c they hold regular elections allow open criticism of the gov do not outlaw other parties until recently Japan was one Mexico South Africa Opportunities to participate are at an all time high State primary elections once the exception have become the rule States now compete to hold the earliest primaries On the other hand presidential campaigns are costly prolonged in the U S Interest group consists of persons w similar opinions on an issue issues that attempts to influence gov They influence legislation policy programs that are of concern to the group in question churches AARP NRA unions international Red Cross Doctors W o Borders Green Peace etc Four Types of Interest Groups Associational Interest Groups o Have distinctive name national HQ professional staff a political agenda NRA Non associational interest groups that lack formal structures o Represent largely unarticulated social ethic religious interests o Largely present in developing countries Institutional interest groups o These groups exist w in a gov can attempt to influence policy in the interests of a particular agency department CIA Defense Department 04 10 2013 04 10 2013