POLDIM Concepts

1. Politics*
 Politics is the public sphere of the state.
o It represents the struggle of power and leadership that gives an individual or a
group, to have the ability to make authoritative decisions for the public as a whole.
 Politics is about conflict and cooperation
o In which a process of resolving conflicts in which rival views and competing interests
are reconciled, risen from the aspects of diversity (we are not all alike) and scarcity
(there is never enough to go round).
 Politics is about the pursuit and exercise of Power
o It is the focus on understanding production, distribution, and use of resources: Who
gets what, when, how, why and where.
 It is the activity through which people make, preserve and amend the general rules which
under people live.
 ex: Dutch parliament

2. State*
 The state is the key arena for politics nowadays – back ancient Greece the states were
actually city-states.
 Nowadays, there are around 200 states in the world, and an example could be Portugal as it
contains (…) ex: Netherlands
 Therefore, a state, to be considered a state, must contain 3 core features:
o A geographic territory with internationally recognized boundaries.
o An identifiable population that lives within those boundaries.
o And a recognized government.
 Very important to note and understand the word “recognition”, that is a key word in the
definition of state - associates an establishment between sovereignty jurisdiction within its
borders and the use of authority via institutions.

3. Sovereignty*
 Sovereignty is a core feature of a state.
 It is the ability of governing within a territory, independently from internal or external rivals.
 This means it has supreme authority domestically and independence internationally.
 As an example, Portugal has sovereignty has it is independent internationally and maintains
supreme authority domestically. Another example, but this time of a country that haven’t
had sovereignty domestically is Colombia, as FARC (…)

4. Monopoly of legitimate violence

 Monopoly of legitimate violence is a core feature of a state.
 This is a theory stated by Max Weber “that all states have (…)”. - Breaking out the term,
“monopoly” means the power controlled by 1 person or 1 institution. “Legitimate” as this
force is recognized and accepted by the people to the state, which give legitimacy to the
 state, and solely the state as an institution to use this force, this “violence” to maintain the
order within its boundaries.
 This theory states that the state alone has the right to use or authorize physical force.
 An example can be the metropolitan police or the Mi5 in the UK, or the FBI in the USA, as
these institutions receive the legitimate power, are authorized, to maintain the order within
the territory, even if in need of using of violence, in order to keep its core function of
protecting the territory and the population within it.

5. Collective goods
 Collective goods are connected to the core functions of the state
 As in order for a state to be a state, the government must be able to provide these
collective goods along with institutions to help society function effectively.
 These are the items and resources that benefit everyone in a society, which people cannot
be excluded from. Examples of collective goods can be laws, infrastructures, regulation,
taxation.

6. Unitary vs. federal states

 One can classify states conform its territorial organization.
 Unitary states and/or Federal states diverge on the amount of power a decision making is
held by the central government.
o Unitary state gathers most of its power at the national level and very little regional
authority. The power is central.
o Federal states have different multiple layers of power, and significant power given to
regional bodies by constitution. Therefore, there’s a central government and also
lower regional governments (federal states).
 An example for a unitary state can be France or Portugal because its central government
maintains most of the power and it’s not divided in regional governments. A federal state
can be Brazil, Germany, or Russia, as they are divided in regional governments.

7. Strong vs. weak states

 One can also classify states conform its influence. It is possible to classify states as weak or
strong, based on 5 characteristics:
o Size (geographical spread and number of population)
o strength of the economy (economical index as, for instance, GDP per capita)
o military might (does the state has access to nuclear weapons? does the state has a
very strong army?)
o robustness of state institutions (to what extent the state can withstand the pressure
of society, system that works and can produce and effectively implement decisions)
o legitimacy (to what extent do people accept the power of the government as the
right to rule).

8. Traditional vs. charismatic vs. rational-legal authority

 There are 3 sources of legitimacy for which citizens acknowledge the duty to obey the state.
 First the traditional authority, that derives from traditional customs and values that can be,
for instance, the monarchy regime or religious states.
 Second, the charismatic authority, that derives from the personal traits of the individual, in
this case the leader, including his charisma or character and persuasiveness. An example of
this can be Napoleon in France or Hitler in Nazi Germany.
 Thirdly, the rational legal authority derives from the status of an office as part of a system of
constitutional rules. Therefore, the leader has rational legal authority as she or he is in office
(prime minister for instance) that has gain power in the office via elections.

9. Legitimacy*
 Legitimacy is one of the core features of the state.
 It is the perception of to what extent people accept the power of the government and
consent the state’s right to rule.
 3 different reasons or categorizations
o traditional authority – derives from traditional customs and values as e.g.,
monarchies.
o charismatic authority – derives from the traits from the person or leader.
o rational-legal authority – sometimes leader is accepted as a leader because that
leader as some sort of rational thinking. someone that has gain power via high status
of an office.
 People need to trust the state, otherwise state becomes weaker and not stable. Legitimacy
is particularly evident in democratic countries where government has been democratically
elected by its population and are more stable, as for instance France or the UK.

10. Power* (with the three faces)

 Power is related to democratic and non-democratic regimes as it is necessary for a ruling
body to rule effectively. It is related to the core features of state.
 It is the ability of achieving a desired outcome, to make others do what they would
otherwise not do, voluntarily. Power has 3 faces or variants:
o First power as decision making, via political or law power in decision, pushing
another one to do something against ones will. ex: paying taxes or tuition fees.
o Second the power related to not take a decision, such as setting the political agenda
to define what kind of subjects will be on agenda. ex. power of not setting
something on agenda.
o Third the power of thought control, that is the control of people think and wants,
which is generally found mostly in non-democratic countries, unlike the other 2
powers. For the last one an example can be North Korea.

11. Narrow vs. broad definition of democracy

 Democracy is a political system where the power resides with the people, or as it has been
stated ‘government of the people, by the people, for the people’, compounding 3 core
features of democracy: ‘of the people’ as equality, ‘by the people’ outlining the importance
 of the participation of the people and ‘for the people’ highlighting the ruling in public
interest.
 Democracy requires 4 key values:
o Participation – political equality: rules’ accountability through frequent, fair, secret
and competitive elections.
o Competition – regime with political parties, checks and balances, separation of
powers
o Freedom – regime guarantees individual rights and liberties: civil rights, political
rights, social rights
o Rule of Law – the public and those in power respect and abide by the rules and
norms of the democratic regime
 There are 2 notions of democracy:
o The first is narrow democracy – focusing on the means of democracy (procedures
and institutions) where there is competitive elections and participation of
electorate, although not very meaningful. For example, Russia is considered a
democracy by the narrow definition of democracy, although lacks real meaning of
participation, and many other ‘goals’ of democracy.
o On the other hand, the broad definition is focused on democratic ideas and values,
of individual freedom and collective quality, where voting is needed but not enough.
This definition, also, looks into the presence of alternative sources of information,
free media, rule of law, lively civil society and free economy. An example of
democracy by broad definition can be the Netherlands, the UK, Portugal, etc.

12. Direct vs. representative democracy

 Democracy can be defined according to how people exercise their power. It can be via
direct democracy or representative democracy.
 Direct democracy is, as the name indicates, the direct say of decisions, taken by the whole
electorate, through direct participation, via referendum, used for instance by the Swiss
political system.
 The representative democracy is the delegation of power, by the people, to representants,
that takes the decisions for the people and holds accountancy. For example, the members
of the parliament, The Netherlands.

13. Pluralism* vs elitism*

 Representative democracy is one type of how people exercise their power in democracy.
There are two separate models showing different sides to a representative democracy.
 The first is the pluralist model where society has multiple groups with competing interests.
All these groups can make their voice heard in the political process and the state regulates
and mediates between these groups. ex: Netherlands.
 Other model, elitism, is a belief that a society or system should be led by an elite, because
mass participation is unrealistic and irrational, and politics belong to an upper society. ex:
France
 14. Liberal democracy*
 Liberal democracy is a democratic ideology.
 It defends the individual freedom over collective equality.
 State power is minimized as little as possible.
 It is based under the idea that freedom produces the greatest prosperity for the majority,
through free market and believing that a certain level of inequality must be accept, as it
pushes one to work harder.
 This ideology requires minimal states interference and involves political pluralism. An
example of liberal democracy can be most of the EU/Developed countries worldwide. Ex:
USA

15. Social democracy*

 Social democracy is a democratic ideology.
 Also respects individual liberties like Liberal Democracies.
 However, in Social Democracies the states is a bit bigger, therefore has more power, to
redistribute from the rich to the poor.
 It is a compromise between wealth production and equality (“the third way”). It respects
individual freedom, although it prioritizes equality over freedom on economic and social
freedoms, in an idea of a welfare state. Therefore, it requires a strong state (redistribution,
taxes, healthcare, etc.). Ex: Norway

16. Illiberal democracy

 Illiberal democracy is an ideology that lack of democratic values, so it is considered to be a
democracy under the notion of narrow democracy.
 It has the presence of regular elections and competing parties; however, it lacks fair
elections, and has a reduced meaningful choice.
 It has frequent abuse of power, corruption, curtailment of press freedom, human rights
violation.
 It has reduced accountability of political ruler to the people.
 An example can be Russia, that has periodical elections, but with unfair elections and a
number of competing political parties very low. It also has problems of abuse of civil and
human rights. Ex: Russia

17. Authoritarianism*
 Authoritarianism is a non-democratic ideology.
 It is a political rule imposed on society regardless its consent and repressing political
dissidents.
 Leaders are accountable to a “selectorate” and not to the electorate.
 There is arbitrary application of the rule of law and the freedom of speech and assembly is
often limited.
 There is very little individual freedom.
 An example can be Venezuela under the regime of Hugo Chávez, and now with Nicolás
Maduro.
 18. Ideology* (traditional vs. contemporary)
 Ideology is a set of ideas that provide a description of the current social and political system
(empirical), or the vision of what political ideal to follow (normative).
 It provides also the necessary means, if necessary, to transform what is into what it should
be. Action oriented, practical.
 However, there are always a difference between theory and practice.

General Criticisms
 Often used in pejorative terms for manipulation, brain washing, bias.
 Associated with repressive state ideologies: fascism, communism
 End of ideologies: less important, more alike.

 Ideologies are divided in traditional ideologies and contemporary ideologies.

 The first one, traditional ideologies, are rooted in the enlightenment and related with the
French revolution. Emerged, also, with the industrial revolution along with the middle class
(liberalism) and working class (socialism). Conservatism, fascism and nationalism are also
exampling traditional ideologies.
 The second one, contemporary ideology, are developed, mainly, after the WW2, and
challenge the claim that one ideology can explain the social and political world and
economic order. They focus on the difference among individual/groups and believe that
there’s always infinite growth, and the world is getting (or can get) better and better.
Examples of contemporary ideologies are feminism, environmentalism, fundamentalism,
populism and multiculturalism.

19. Liberalism* (classical vs. social)

 Liberalism is a traditional ideology.
 Is the dominant ideology in the west and “default ideology” after the cold-war.
 It is the believed that people should be by its own. People understand their own business
and own interests better than the government. Individual is very important, and
government is seen as a threat to that.

 Classical liberalism and social liberalism are 2 strands of liberalism.

 Classical liberalism is the result of the breakdown of feudalism and the emergence of
capitalist society. Against absolutism and feudal privilege.
 It believes in maximum freedom of individual as it is self-sufficient, free market as best tool
to meet human needs and minimal state insuring security and private property rights. Ex:
USA
 Social liberalism believes that the state must correct inequalities of the market as free
market does not create genuine equality of opportunity because individuals do not start
from the same position.
 The state must intervene in e.g. free education and healthcare to promote real equality of
opportunity. Ex: Norway/Finland

 Neo Liberalism means to go back to the classical liberalism, as the emergence of big
government is a threat to individual liberty. The idea that government comes and takes our
money.
 Free market and minimal state. Liberalization, privatization, deregulation.
 This brings disasters as banks shouldn’t check themselves, or healthcare and transports
shouldn’t be privatised.

Criticisms:
 It brings to privatization and deregulation and not necessarily to better situation.
 For Marxists makes unequal class power legitimate. It’s a bourgeois ideology. They benefit
for it.
 This is a male model self-sufficiency for feminists.
 The focus on individual leads to egoism and greed. No moral basis for social order.

20. Individualism*
 Individualism is a core value of liberalism.
 It is the focus on the individual, prior to society, and it should be protected against society
and the state or any collective body.
 Individuals are rational and able to determine and pursue their own interests.
 Ex: Many western countries USA/The Netherlands

21. Freedom* (negative vs. positive)

 Freedom or liberty (the two terms are best used interchangeably) is a core value of
liberalism.
 In its broadest sense, is the ability to think or act as one wishes.
 Negative freedom means non-interference: the absence of external constraints on the
individual. Ex: Freedom of choice, civil liberty, privacy.
 Positive freedom is linked to the achievement of some identifiable goal or benefit, usually
personal development or self-realization, though Berlin defined it as self-mastery and linked
it to democracy. Ex: One’s dream of becoming a politician

22. Socialism* (revolutionary vs reformist)

 Socialism is a traditional ideology.
 Grown as an alternative to liberalism, is defined in opposition to capitalism, designed to
provide a more human alternative to organize society.
 It represents the interests of the industrial working class, and capital is the main
determinant of society.
 There are two means of socialism (in how to turn capitalism into socialism), the
revolutionary socialism and the reformist socialism.
 The first one is a revolution by popular uprising, with the targeting the end of state and
social classes (Marxism) or its replacement by a dictatorship of the proletariat
(Communism/Leninism). Ex: Revolutionists in Cuba in 1960s (Fidel Castro)
The second one is a universal suffrage in a political democracy, aiming the public
ownership of the means of production, collectivization managed by the state (planned
economies)

 Criticism
For the past 2000 years, socialism has been the main oppositional force to
capitalism/liberalism in Western societies
Collapse of communism in Eastern/Soviet Union cast doubt on usefulness of socialism:
does socialism inevitably lead to authoritarianism/dictatorship?
“Permanently” tainted by association with statism: both communism and social
democracy extend state control and restrict freedom
Socialism is only a critique of capitalism. The acceptance of market principles by social
democrats proves that socialism is flawed

23. Marxism*
 Marxism is a strand of revolutionary socialism. Karl Marx, as the booster of this philosophy,
believed that the bourgeoise exploits the working class, and the way to act against it is by
revolting. The capitalism is doomed. The aim of this revolt was the end of the state and
social classes, replacing it with communism. Ex:

24. Equality of opportunities vs. of outcomes

 Equality is a core feature of democratic traditional ideologies. The word means that
everyone as a human being, should be seen as equal. Equality is related to liberalism and
socialism, although the two ideologies beliefs in equality differently.
 Liberalism focus on the equality of opportunities. State should intervene solely to make sure
the same starting point is for each individual, providing for instance healthcare, education.
The outcome doesn’t need to be equal and it’s not expected, as each person as different
social capacities and are rewarded for that. Furthermore, inequality is seen as beneficial as
it provides incentive.
 Socialism beliefs in the equality of outcomes, as individuals don’t differ of ability, but of
their place in society. If one is born in a wealthy family, it is likely for one to keep your
wealthy throughout life.

25. Conservatism*
 Conservatism is a traditional ideology.
 As the word conserve, it means to save or keep what we already have.
 This ideology is against rationalism, as the world is too complex to be susceptible of easy
rational comprehension. One must rely on tradition which is the collective wisdom of
society gained over many generations.
 Society is very complexed and should be modified gradually, keeping what is valuable.
 The collective wisdom of the past and present is more valuable than the abstract reasoning
of the few.
 Individuals are not equal, as some are more skilled than others. There must be respect for
authority and hierarchy. Ex: Republican Party (USA)
 Criticisms
Reaction to the growing changes brought about by the French Revolution and the Industrial
Revolution
Defense of the traditional social order
Seen as a ruling class ideology
Incoherent, as some conservatives support welfare policies guided by the state, while other
strands of conservatism advocate laissez-faire liberalism combined with respect for
authority.

26. Nationalism*
 Nationalism is a traditional ideology.
 It’s the natural assumption that humankind is divided by nations which group of people
bound together by a common language, religion, history and tradition, distinct nations.
 Nation as a natural form of political community is the most appropriate unit of political rule.
Therefore, if having this division, and therefore the Nation, the idea of nationalism is that
this group (Nation) should be together in one nation (Nation-state). Nation and state should
be congruent (the same).
 Thus, nation-state emerges when people who share a common culture or ethnic identity
gain the right to self-government.
Ex: Catalan nationalist movement

27. Nation-state*
 Nation-state is a core assumption related to Nationalism.
 Nationalists believe that humankind is naturally divided into nations – people who share the
same language, culture, religion etc.
 The nation-state is both a form of political organization and a political ideal. In the first case
it is an autonomous political community bound together by the overlapping bonds of
citizenship and nationality. ex: The Netherlands

28. Nation*
 Nationalists believe that humankind is divided into nations.
 Nation is a form the group of people that stay together sharing the same traits, common
language, religion, history and tradition.
 The nation is the natural form of political community. It’s a phenomenon that is shaped by a
collection of political, cultural and psychological factors.
 Political as individuals maintain natural political community. Psychological because they
share the same unconscious sense of patriotism, and cultural for the language, religion (...).
Ex: Catalonia
 29. Civic vs. ethnic nationalism
 Civic and ethnic are different varieties of Nationalism.
 Civic nationalism is an inclusive form of nationalism. Any individual that wishes to be part of
the nation, even not sharing some traits, can be part of it as long as manifests loyalty to the
nation. Ex: ‘The American Dream’ or France.
 Another one is the ethnic nationalism. Ethic nationalism, in contrary to civic nationalism, is
exclusive, with loyalty solely to shared languages, religion and culture. Only these sharing
the same traits can belong to the nation-state. Ex: Nazi Party. German in this case would
also need to be back in Germany.

 Political nationalism uses the nation for political ends.

- Liberal nationalism says all nations are equal and have right to self-determination.
- Conservative nationalism says patriotism as root of social cohesion.
- Expansionist nationalism is an aggressive and militaristic form of nationalism
- Anti-colonial nationalism is a social development and national liberation in Africa, Asia and
Latin America.

 Is it Outdated? (Criticisms)
- Is it really ideology? It says nothing about the kind of political system it is needed – it is
compatible with many political ideologies.
- It is a powerful force in understanding WWI and WWII, as well as post-colonial process of
nation building.
- Globalization and supranationalism are eroding the nation. Replaced by ethnic and
regional identities instead of national identities.

30. Fascism*
 Fascism is a traditional ideology.
 It is an ideology emerging in the interwar period and it should be seen within its historical
context. It does not make sense to claim contemporary personalities as fascists for example.
 It is a rebellion against progress, freedom and equality replaced by leadership, power,
submission, heroism, war, looking for a unified national community. It’s about glorification
of war, submitting people, expansion, hierarchy. The individual is not important, it should
be absorbed into the values of the nation.
 Everything opposed to that should be eradicated. Discrimination and expansion are
characteristics of Fascism.
 An example is Hitler and the Nazi regime. Ex: Germany or Italy under Hitler or Mussolini
 Today: anti-immigration, exclusive forms of nationalism, anti-globalization.
 Fascism is about one people, one Reich and one leader.
 31. Feminism* (liberal vs socialist vs radical vs difference)
 Feminism is a contemporary ideology.
 It has had its first wave with the suffragette movement in the late 19th century – early 20th.
 Focuses on the opposition of women on all level of society, proposing actions that improves
women’s status in politics, in the economy, social relationship, the household.
 The main claim is the believe that woman and man are treated differently because of
gender. Gender is not just a reflection of biological differences but is socially defined and
politically constructed. It originates discrimination based on gender, with the idea that
woman is not able to lead multinational companies or other things.
 It believes that patriarchy is real, as a system of pervasive and structured male power in
society, as male rules everything in society and that’s why society is structured a certain
way to favor man.
 It believes that patriarchy is real and the unequal treatment against women must be
overturned. Feminism has 4 different strands:
The liberal wants equal civic and economic rights as men.
The socialism it’s a link between female subordination and the capitalist mode of
production (exploitation).
Radical feminism seeks liberation and not equality, as modern society is patriarchal, and
women are oppressed (‘the private is political).
And difference feminism is fundamentally the distinction of values from women (based
on compassion and consensus) from men, and therefore women values should gain a
better foothold in society and women should strive to copy men, and men should
feminize society.
 Criticisms:
 Focus on the gender biases that pervade society and are purposefully ignored by
conventional political studies.
But:
 Incoherent: there is so many strands that it hard to define feminism and question of what is
“woman”.
 No longer relevant in post-feminist societies, that have an achieved equality... to some
degree.

32. Patriarchy*
 Patriarchy is related in contemporary ideologies the feminism. It’s commonly referred as
the ‘rule by men’. It’s the notion that modern society is dominated by men. A system of
pervasive and structured male power in society. In its broader sense, draws its attention to
the submissive, exploitative oppression which women are subject. Ex: US Presidents
(historically exclusively men)

33. Gender*
 Gender is related in contemporary ideologies to feminism. It’s the social definition and
politically construction of characteristics for men and women, rather than reflecting purely
biological differences. Gender highlights social and cultural differences between women and
men, while sex denotes biological differences. Therefore, gender refers to the distinction of
the social roles of male and female and operates through stereotypes of femininity and
masculinity. Ex: Stereotypes – men focused on career and women more focused on family

34. Ecologism* (deep vs shallow)

 Ecologism or environmentalism is a contemporary ideology.
 It’s the biocentric perspective that gives priority to nature on planet placing it before
humans. Nature is more important than humans. If we continue to treat the planet like this
e won’t have humankind in the future.
 It is the awareness of deep-seated, far-reaching environmental problems driven by human
activity as for instance plant and animal extinction, climate change.
 The ecologism has 2 strands, deep ecology and shallow ecology.
 Deep ecology proclaims that nature has its own value, and we need to stop economic
growth if we want to save nature. It challenges the notions of infinite growth and progress
(radical environmentalism). Ex: Radical environmentalists
 Shallow ecologism is the movement to protect environment has we, humans, need it for our
own benefit. Protect the nature but keeping economy going. (ex.) Sustainable development
is the solution. Ex. SDG’s – Greenpeace

Criticisms:
 It is rooted in the backlash against industrialization. There is a certain element of
romanticism and conservatism
 Rise of green movements and parties after 1960s
 Draws attention to the imbalance between human and the natural world. We as humans
are more destructive to environment than otherwise – even though some people say the
opposite.
 It is the only truly global ideology – as it’s the only truly global problem.
But:
 Limited impact due to its anti-growth stance. – Basically, it asks for a lot of people and all
the comfortability of deep ecologists. As a general way of life is not compatible.
 Also, politicians are now more focused in economic development due to the corona crisis.

35. Sustainable development*

 Sustainable development is connected to ecologism values.
 It’s the plan to keep developing, growing economic wise, while protecting the environment,
in order to be possible to extend existence for a longer period of time.
 It’s a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations. Ex: Planting trees to preserve forests

36. Multiculturalism*
 Multiculturalism is a contemporary ideology.
 It’s the focus on social and cultural diversity deriving from ethnicity, language and race.
 Individuals are culturally embedded, and that influences one’s world perspective (identity
politics). If you have a certain skin colour, or sexual orientation – identity – will influence
one political preference.
 Cultures must be protected, especially when it belongs to a minority or vulnerable group.
This could be also to justify illiberal cultures for example.
 It is a response to nationalism, to the dominance of secular liberalism and to the
individualism with the empowerment of minorities. It reacts to the reality of the cultural
diversity in modern societies. Pluralist state. Ex: Celebration of cultures, other religion
holidays for examples in London

 Criticisms
- If you focus on a group, it may endanger individual rights.
- It also justifies reactionary and oppressive practices ex. subordination of women.
- Multiculturalism and identity politics underplay the diversity within group. Identity politics
claims that all the group are homogeneous and think the same and it’s not true, as they are
very different.
- Maybe threat social cohesion (in liberal, secular states). How can we make sure we can get
social cohesion? Assimilation – basically tempting to reduce differences (with a forceful
element). Integration – Is the idea that people should be allowed to have their own culture
as long as they don’t conflict or violate the constitution of the others.

37. Identity Politics*

 Identity politics is related to the contemporary ideology multiculturalism. Culture influences
the way people look at certain things. One group’s oppression shapes itself identity through
 what amounts to a process of political-cultural self-assertation. Manifestations of identity
politics are diverse, from lgbtqi movement to feminism. It can be understood as a cultural
phenomenon. Ex: Black Lives Matter- Movement

38. Minority rights*

 Minority right are related to the contemporary ideology multiculturalism. In a response to
individualism, minority rights are rights that are specific to the groups which they belong.
They are thought as ‘special rights’ as not shared by the larger society. They come on behalf
of people with disabilities, women, linked with factors as sexuality, ethnicity, religion, and
therefore they are referred as ‘multicultural rights’. There are 3 types of minority rights:
polyethnic that help preserving group’s distinctive values and way of life; representation
rights aiming to redress a group’s under-representation in education and positions of
power; and self-government rights that afford a group (usually a national minority) political
autonomy, but which stop short of sovereign independence. Ex: Native American in the US.

39. Assimilation vs tolerance

 Assimilation and toleration are both, quite opposite, ways to create social cohesion in a
community. Assimilation is an attempting to reduces differences, making the minorities
assimilate the same values, language, religion, etc. Ex: Forcing Muslim women to not wear
head/face covering
 The second one means the tolerance towards groups to celebrate and practice their
differences, creating a sense of belonging. Ex: Muslim women being allowed to wear
headscarves in non-Muslim states.

40. Populism*
 Populism is a contemporary ideology.
 It is the opposition of multiculturalism/changing society, as society is getting more diverse.
 The instincts and wishes of (ordinary) people should be the main legitimate guide for
political action.
 They support ordinary people against corrupt economic and political elites, as this last one’s
don’t know what the common people want.
 Direct link between leader and people, and all the intermediary state institutions are being
distrusted as they pervert people’s will. Most of populists use for ex. twitter as – they state
– this is the most direct way to speak with the people and media won’t change their words.
 Modern technology facilitates the appeal of populist leaders.
 This is the support of common people against corrupt economic and political elites. It is
focused on the ordinary people, that think everything in the middle of the leader and
themselves is corrupt. Ex: Trump

 Criticisms:
Populism is implicitly authoritarian. How can one claim that the leader is not presenting the
will of the people? it’s not possible to disprove.
It is implicitly manipulative: what “is the will of the people”? who’s the people?
 It gives voice to the crudest hopes and fears of masses and leaves no space for deliberation
or rational analysis.

41. Religious fundamentalism*

 Religious fundamentalism is a contemporary ideology.
 Fundamentalism is a style of ideology thought in which certain principles are recognized as
essential truths that are unchallengeable authority, regardless of its content.
 Therefore, religious fundamentalism is the belief that religion values should guide the
principles of public life. Public institutions also should be guided by religious principles, and
not be separated from the church.
 It contrasts with secularism – religion is something that you should do inside your own
house and away from the public sphere of society, or in better words to not mix them both.
 These communities are identifiable and in most cases they are a minorities.
 Ex: ISIS – Iran – Saudi Arabia

 Criticisms:
They are morality conservative thus anti-modernist, but they use the benefits of modern
society to pursue their goals (modern communications and weapons)
Breeds political extremism, as the use of force to achieve religious goals is legitimate.
Implicitly oppressive as it insists on a single unquestionable truth and a single
unquestionable source of political authority
Tension between pluralism and liberal democracy

42. Political Systems

 Political systems are the process in which governments make official decisions.
 A set of interrelated institutions that works together to formulate and implement the
collective goals of society. What you can do and what you cannot do and what the goals
that society are about.
 By saying that, political systems vary according to how the executive branch is elected and
how the power is distributed between the branches of government. Involves questions as
who should have authority, what is the influence of government on its people and
economy.
 Based on that, there are many types of political systems as presidential, semi-presidential,
monarchy, dictatorship, and many other.

43. Constitution*
 The constitution is a formal set of rules that must be followed by the government, state and
its citizens.
 It manages the power division between branches, lays out clearly what each of the
branches is supposed to do and how they relate with each other.
 Establishes the broad rules of politics, what it can be done and what cannot be done in the
politic sphere.
 Protects citizens from arbitrary decisions by powerful people. It defines the relationship
between state and the individual.
 The constitution imposes meta-rules on what government can do, it governs the
government. It brings stability, predictability and order to the actions of government.
 Constitutions are generally a written document. However not all of them, as for instance the
British one. Ex: US constitution

44. Separation of powers*

 The separation of powers is the division of the 3 different branches of government
(legislative, executive and judicial branch).
 The separation of powers demands interdependence in a way that there should be no
overlap the exercise of other branch core functions and implies interdependence as they all
share powers and evaluate each other functions. Ex: USA, The Netherlands.

45. Executive*, legislative and judiciary branches

 The 3 branches of government are the executive, the legislative and the judiciary branch.
 The executive is the branch of government that carries out the laws and policies of the
state, to actually execute those policies.
 There two types of executive, the political executive – the government of the day – and the
official executive – administrative machinery of the government – these last do not change
after elections. They are fixed, not populated by elected officials.
 That formulates and implements the policy made by the government. It extends from the
head of government or chief executive to the members of enforcement agencies such as
police and the military.
 Head of State – president, monarch. Represent the people nationally and internationally. It
does not invest with political power.
 The head of government – deals with the everyday tasks of running the state (“state CEO”)
these are the ones with political power.
 Ex: US President

 The legislative branch is the branch of government that makes the laws. It is the law giver
and provides the executive branch with the rules to follow.
 Usually embodied in parliaments or representative assemblies (congresses). They are big
bodies, groups of many representatives.
 It can be unicameral (legislative house/ chamber) or bicameral (two houses/chambers,
lower house/upper house, assembly of representatives and senate). Ex: US House of
Representatives.
 The differences between two can be by tradition (UK), federalism – as federal countries
might opt for bicameral legislatures (US), higher quality of the legislative process.

 The judicial branch interprets laws and insures the constitutionality of laws and of
government actions and their fair application to all citizens. It constituted by the courts and
 judges of the various law courts. Makes sure that everybody follows the constitution. Ex: US
Supreme Court

46. Prime Minister (PM)*

 Prime minister is the head of government, which powers derive from his or her leadership
of the majority party, or a coalition of parties, in parliament or assembly. Prime ministers
are formal chief executives or head of government, but its responsibilities vary from the
president as they work within parliamentary or semi-presidential systems and govern
through the parliament and usually, they share their executive power with the cabinet. Ex:
António Costa in Portugal and Boris Johnson in the UK.

47. President*
 President is the head of state. It can be a constitutional president, or non-executive
president, and have mostly is responsibility confined to the figurehead of state, of
ceremonial, whilst the executive power is held by the prime minister and/or a cabinet. This
is a parliamentary system characteristic. The executive president combines the formal
responsibilities with the political executive power of a chief officer, found in presidentialism
systems.

48. Head of government vs. head of state

 The head of government is the prime-minister and deals with the everyday tasks, running
the state (state CEO). The head of state is the president, or monarch. Represents the people
nationally and internationally. It is not invested with political power, having mainly
ceremonial position.

49. Political vs official executive

 The political executive and the official executive are the two branches of the executive
branch itself. The political executive is the head of state, or the head of government and the
cabinet. It is the government of the day. Ex: Former US President Barack Obama.
The official executive is the bureaucratic side constituted by the officers that run
institutions, as for example the military, non-elected state officials or civil servants. The
official executive is not replaced after elections. Ex: Military officials.

50. Parliament*
 Parliament is the legislative branch of power, the popularly elected chamber in a bicameral
system or for the single chamber in a unicameral system. The parliament is the law-making
body. It debates and deliberates politics and political issues. Parliament can be categorized
conform its power to influence policies. Policy-making parliament enjoy autonomy and have
active impact on policy. Executive-dominated parliaments don’t really exercise influence
and just approve executive decisions. Ex: Dutch parliament

51. Bicameralism*
 Bicameralism is one of two possible structures followed by the legislative branch of
government. It is the fragmentation of the legislative power in two chambers or houses in
 the parliament. Bicameralism systems are classified according to the role and power of
second chamber or ‘upper house’. The second chamber are constitutionally and politically
generally subordinate to the first house. The second chamber exercise limited power,
having often the essential function of revising chambers. Ex: House of Commons UK

52. Functions of legislatures

 Legislatures are the institutions that represents society as wide as possible.
 Express views of constituents check the executive branch and uphold the constitution. It
holds the executive accountability for its actions.
 Legislators represent political parties and are expected to hold partisan ideologies that
informs their views on political issues and priorities on parliamentary debates, helping on
the formation of public attitudes as well. It makes public important issues and make policy-
making more open.
 How truly representatives around the globe and Europe are? Parliaments, unfortunately, do
not represent society as they should, but they are not. There is not a specific representative
group in society. The parliament represents better the elites than rather representing
everybody in society.
 Taking a look to the situation of women and minorities representation in parliament
globally, it is possible to determine that it lacks diversity and balanced representation.

 Parliaments also increase and allow for accountability, holding executive responsible for its
actions.
 Parliament debates help form public attitudes, shapes society, set agenda for public debate,
provide a forum for the expression of various contentious opinions. It is a forum for
expression, where opinions can be out and debated against one another.
 Ritualize conflict – These legislatures give legitimacy to diversity in society, representing all
the different views of society. making it important and taking these voices from the street
and making them institutional. Do they exacerbate conflict or help solve disputes?
 They put all the conflicts and different views out there, they are transparent. They make us
all possible to follow the debates. They make policy-making more open.
 Parliament are places of partisanship. Legislators represent political parties, where political
parties interact, put on their agenda.
 Ex: Any parliament

53. Presidential government* (with pros and cons)

 Presidentialism is a democratic system where the legislative and the executive are elected
independently of each other for a fixed term.
 The president is both the head of state and government.
 He/She names the cabinet, which is responsible to him/her. The cabinet (congress in the
US) is the set of ministers, that are directly responsible to the president.
 The president and his cabinet form the executive. Ex: US

Advantages:
 The pros of a presidential government are gives greater choice to voters and direct
legitimacy to both branches because there is no intermediate between the elected and the
voters. It has fixes terms that gives stability to the system. Mutual checks between
legislatives and executive work well given that they do not depend on each other. And the
main argument on presidentialism is its efficacy as the president gives coherent and unified
policy leadership. He has high legitimacy, series of powers (army, foreign policy).

Disadvantages:
 The cons are when the president is not supported by parliamentary majority is fixed terms
and in independence encourage deadlock/conflict much more likely between executive and
legislative; and it has no clear accountability, not clear to who to blame for faulty policies.
When the president is supported by majority, it leads to winners and losers sharply defines
for clear periods of time and leads to divisive style of politics and stability at price of rigidity.
There are limits on reelection and the need of reproduce new candidates in elections. It can
lead to hasty decisions, ill-conceived policies.

54. Parliamentary government* (with pros and cons)

 Parliamentary government is a democratic system.
 The voters only elect the parliament. The parliament elects the executive branch. In which
the parliamentary is directly elected and the government governs in and through the
parliament, fusing the legislative and executive branches.
 This system is focused and interested in a prime minister. Parliamentary systems vocalize
the executive branch in the prime minister. The PM and the cabinet are responsible to the
legislative branch. The pm and cabinet hold power while they uphold confidence from the
parliament and will stay in power while supported by the parliament.
 The executive is a cabinet of officials selected by the parliament to conduct the affairs of the
state. The cabinet is responsible to the parliament. At any time, a majority vote in the
parliament can unseat a cabinet (“fall of government”) and lead to the creation of a new
cabinet.
 The leader of the cabinet is the head of government and holds the political power (PM)
 The president/monarch is the head of state. S/he has representative but no political
powers.
 Ex: The Netherlands, Germany.

Advantages:
 The pros of a parliamentary government are that there is no conflict between the executive
and legislative branches as long as there is a majority; and the accountability is clear as
voters know exactly who to blame, who is responsible – the parties in power.

Disadvantages:
 The cons are the government is unstable, prone to breaking down when there is no clear
majority for one party to form the cabinet; need to form coalitions. “marriages of
convenience”
 And post-electoral bargaining distorts voters’ choices; voters do not know what they get.
It’s not clear who to blame.

55. Coalition*
 Coalition is the compound conveniently when there is no clear majority in elections to form
cabinet. These are therefore usually found in proportional representation systems. These
political rivals are brought together to form government. It can blur the voters’ choice that
do not know who to held accountability for mistakes, as many times the two parties might
follow totally different ideologies. One example can be the German grand coalition of the
Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) with the Social Democrats (SPD).

56. Semi-presidentialism
 Semi-presidentialism is a democratic system in which combines parliamentary and
presidential features.
 Both the parliament and the president are directly elected, and there’s a balance of
legislative and executive power. The prime minister is appointed by the president, which
has foreign affairs power as well. The legislative branch approves and can also resign the
prime minister. The prime minister is responsible to parliament. The president has foreign
affairs responsibility and also political power to dissolve the parliament.
 An example for semi-presidentialism can be France, this model is actually named the
‘French model’.

Disadvantages:
 It has a potential for authoritarian executive when one party controls both executive and
legislative.
 Danger of gridlock during cohabitation.

57. Member of parliament (MP)

 A MP is, as the name indicates, part of the parliament. It’s a representative elected in
democratic systems to serve in the legislative branch. Duties include: Approve or disapprove
laws and regulations, represent the interests of a particular political party and participate in
parliamentary debates. Example: Geert Wilders (PVV), Marisa Matias (Portuguese BE).

58. Elections*
 Elections is the basic way in which people participate in democratic political process.
 It is the means of selecting leaders and representatives.
 The way to demonstrate preferences for leader, ideas, goals.
 Formal, basic and organized ways in which citizens can influence the democratic process by
voting for political candidates.
 All adult citizens account for one vote and depending on the electoral system, citizens may
vote for who serves in parliament or may vote for heads of state (the later in presidential
and semi-presidential systems). Ex: 2021 Dutch parliamentary elections
 59. Constituencies/district
 Constituencies or districts – electoral districts – are divisions of the territory for electoral
purposes.
 Each constituency/district has a number of legislative seats. The number of legislative seats
differ depending on the population size: district magnitude.
 Example: Constituencies in the United Kingdom

60. Plurality – FPTP

 A majoritarian system with a plurality voting or ‘First Past The Post’ voting (FPTP) is an
electoral system.
 It unfolds in single member areas, and each area votes for one representative. The winner
with that sit will be the candidate with the most votes. This is a Winner-takes-all system as
it takes up all the available seats in that district/area.
Ex. The UK uses this system for the lower house or the house of commons.
 Candidates with most votes in a single member district wins and takes up all available seats
in that district in a Winner-takes-all system Example: Electoral College in the USA

61. Two round system

 A majoritarian system with two round system is an electoral system.
 It has 2 steps - first has an election based on the plurality - FPTP voting system.
 After the first round, if no candidate has an absolute majority, a second round will take
place.
 In this second round, the names of the two candidates who received the most votes are on
the ballot and battle for absolute majority. Example: France elections for the assemblé
nacional.

62. Wasted votes

 In a majoritarian system, due to the ‘First Past The Post’- principle votes for a candidate that
happened to not receive the most votes in the constituency, are ‘wasted’ 100% of the
available seats go to the winning candidate, despite voters electing other candidates as
well, these votes are therefore considered to be ‘wasted’. Example: Votes for Democratic
Party in Florida in 2020 US Election

63. Pros and cons majoritarian systems

 Advantages of a majoritarian system
- Simplicity
- Reduces the number of parties and creates parties that are able to achieve parliamentary
majorities. It’s easier for voters to connect with their representatives
- Creates one party governments
- Increases accountability: who is responsible for decisions/policies
- Facilitates strong opposition and broadly based parties
- Disadvantages extremists parties
 Disadvantages of a majoritarian system:
- Votes cast for non-winning candidates are wasted
- Decreases participation: small parties unlikely to achieve significant votes leads to
supporters to not vote at all
- In a plurality system: a candidate may win with less than 50% of votes – How
representative are they?
- Can exclude minorities as people have only a limited choice to vote for.
Example: Two party system in the USA

64. Party list Proportional Representation (PR)*

 Proportional Representation - Party list system is an electoral system.
 Party lists system operates in multi-member districts – In one district in one area there will
be several seats, several representatives to elect.
 Each party presents a list of eligible candidates for all seats in a district.
 Parties receive seats in proportion with the share of votes received in that district.
 It can be a closed list PR – party creates the order lists, and the party decides who’s on the
list and what order and voters just vote. Then, depending on the number of seats won,
being ‘x’, they first ‘x’ of the list will gain a seat
 In open lists PR the voters vote for lists and also what candidates they prefer.
Example: The Netherlands, even though the Netherlands only have 1 single district.

65. Pros and cons proportional systems

 Advantages of proportional representation:
- It decreases number of ‘wasted votes’ significantly
- Insures more accurate representation
- Gives more representation toward minorities

 Disadvantages of proportional representation:

- Large number of parties: political fragmentation – small parties have disproportionate
influence.
- Create coalition governments less able to implement coherent policies
- More power to political parties instead of voters as parties decide who is on the party
list
Example: The number of parties in Dutch parliament

66. Political party*

 Group of officials or those that desire to be who are linked to a larger group of voters,
citizens, into an organization. They exist to make sure that this larger group of people are
represented in parliament.
 Both linked to democracy and non-democratic regimes – although in the last ones they do
not function effectively as they should.
 Main objective: promote its desired political agenda and ensure that its officials attain or
maintain power
Examples: Democratic/Republican parties (USA), VVD/GroenLinks (Netherlands)

67. Functions of parties

 Represent society and express what society/public wants.
 Organize society and mobilize society and shape it.
 The political parties are the ones offering solutions to problems of society – they are the
vehicles for competition
 Set political agendas/campaign.
 Recruit leaders.
 Nominate candidates.
 Make government responsible.
 Parties makes leaders accountable as well
Example: Democratic Party (USA) assumes all aforementioned core functions

68. Types of party systems: one, two, multi

 System of interactions resulting from interparty competition – The pattern of all political
parties in a state.
 Dominant/ one-party systems - Several parties exist, but one party always wins elections.
Examples: Mexico/Japan
 Two-party systems - Only two parties are able to obtain absolute majorities. Example: USA
 Multi-party systems - A large number of parties exists, and several have chances to win
elections and form government either on its own or in a coalition government. Example:
Italy

69. Duverger’s Law

 Duverger’s law says that if the country uses Plurality – FPTP – than the country will tend to
produce 2 party systems.
 First past the post system is foundation - People do not vote for whom they support, but for
who they think will win and is most endurable, to not waste their own votes.
 Polarization takes place and majority parties get support, small parties or (independent)
candidates are out of the race.

 On the other side, if proportional representation system is foundation

- No waste of votes: People vote for who they like and so many parties can co-exist
- Proportional representation system favors the multiparty system

70. Reasons for disillusionment with parties

 Global trend of declining party membership. Several reasons are given for this trend:
 Parties are corrupt and pursue only the interests of their bosses and officials and the
wealthy businessman that support the party.
 Thought that parties do not stand for anything in particular, and that parties are too similar
in practice
 Parties create social divisions and make them worse – it is not the mirror of society
 Parties squabble over petty issues for meaningless political advantage
 Parties become only active points of interest during election time – don’t really care about
their voters until elections.
 Parties do a bad job at governing – they are not delivering; effective leaders.
Example: Significant reduction of party members in The Netherlands

71. Antipolitics*
 Antipolitics is the rejection of conventional politics – parties, elections, pm’s, mp’s (..)
rejected by an increasingly large number of people for various reasons combined by the
reasons of rejection of parties as well.
 There is no real choice between political parties. All these ideological templates are no
longer useful. Parties are leaving their ideological believes with the purpose of gaining
political power.
 For instance, coalitions of parties with very different places in the ideological spectrum
leads to disappointment.

Reasons for recent rise in antipolitics:

 Electoral democracy forces politicians to promise more than they are ever able to deliver
 Complex modern societies are increasingly difficult to govern in an era of an increasingly
globalized world
 Professionalized political classes unable to relate to ordinary people.
 Democracies are messy and slow to act; result of freedom of expression and the need for
many actors in decision-making

All this leads to antipolitics as rejection of conventional politics and to the rise of politicians and
parties who label themselves as ‘outsiders’ and use populism to attract and mobilize
supporters

Examples: Donald Trump (USA), Thierry Baudet (Netherlands)