Introduction To Political Science: Chapter Iv: States

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INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL SCIENCE

CHAPTER IV: STATES
Assist. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Karahöyük

O ff i c e : Z - 0 8
Email: mustafakarahoyuk@beykent.edu.tr
Political Science: An Introduction
Chapter 4
States
(Eduardo Verdugo/AP Photo)

Copyright @ 2012, 2010, 2008 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
+Nation and State
 Nation – a population with sense of self, shared history, culture, and

often language
 State – governmental structure, usually sovereign and powerful to

enforce its rule over a specific territory
 States typically create nations, not other way around

 French nation created by French kings and their state
 United States, as a nation, created by framers of Constitution out of 13 colonies
+Institutionalized Power
 Political institutions are working structures of government
 Powers of institutions created by forceful personalities
 Good institutions are flexible and evolve; institutions give

political system stability
 Institutions greater than individual leaders
+Effective, Weak, and Failed States
 Effective states – control and tax entire territory, ensure laws are obeyed;
corruption is minor; tend to be better off (Western countries, Japan etc.)
 Weak states – crime penetrates politics; government unable to fight lawlessness,

corruption, breakaway movements; justice is bought, elections often rigged; most
revenue disappears into private pockets (e.g. Mexico/Nigeria and oil resources)
 Failed states – no real national government with little if any control of territory;
warlords and criminal cartels free to do what they want; threatened with
territorial breakup (Afghanistan)
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Aristotle’s Six Types of Government
 The earliest and most famous classification of governments was

Aristotle’s in the fourth century B.C.
 A monarchy, according to Aristotle, is one person ruling in the
interest of all (hereditary rule by one person)
 Aristocracy is several persons ruling in the interest of all
 Aristotle saw the polity as the rule of many in the interests of all and
the best form of government
+
 A monarchy, according to Aristotle, is one person ruling in the

interest of all. But monarchy can degenerate into tyranny, the corrupt
form, under which the single ruler exercises power for the benefit of
self.
 Aristocracy, Greek for rule of the best (aristos), is several persons

ruling in the interest of all. But this legitimate rule by an elite can
decay into oligarchy, the corrupt form, in which several persons rule
in the interest of themselves.
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 Aristotle saw the polity (what we might call constitutional

democracy) as the rule of many in the interests of all and the best
form of government. All citizens have a voice in selecting leaders and
framing laws, but formal constitutional procedures protect rights.
 Aristotle warned that polity can decay into the corrupt form,
democracy, the rule of many in the interests of themselves, the worst
form of government. Deluded into thinking that one person is as good
as another, the masses in a democracy follow the lead of corrupt and
selfish demagogues and plunder the property of the hardworking and
the capable.
+ Monarchies and Republics
 Several figurehead monarchies (monarchies that have effective parliaments) exist

such as Britain, Norway, Spain, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Japan.
 Only a few true monarchies exist, mostly in Muslim countries such as Morocco,
Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
 Most nations call themselves republics, but not all are democratic (e.g. Iran).
 Some republics are highly centralized and most policies and rules emanate from
the capital
10
King Abdullah plays with a Saudi princeling at a festival. Saudi Arabia is

one of the world’s last working monarchies.
+
Unitary Systems
 A unitary system includes centralization of power in a nation’s capital

with little autonomy for subdivisions (only one capital, one legislative
center)
 Unitary governments control local authorities and citizens’ lives more than
federal systems do.
 Power is concentrated in the national capital.
 Officially Britain is unitary, but has devolved power
 France also decentralized power in recent decades
 Spain has granted autonomy to many of its regions; Basques remain a
problem (a unitary and regional state)
+Pros and Cons of Unitary Systems
 Pros (+)
 Centralization may solve modern problems
 Clear lines of authority can be useful
 Coordination of policy is easier
 Cons (-)
 Local governments may not have power to perform simple tasks
 Local governments may be ignored
+ Federalism
 A federal system grants much autonomy to first-order civil divisions with some powers
that cannot be easily overridden by central government.
 Power is balanced between the center and the components.
 Federal systems provide stronger defense for entities that would be weak on their own
 A federal union may be only way to keep a state together, as was the case with India at
independence
 A federal system provides a larger economy without trade barriers, thus aiding greater
prosperity
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+Modern Federal Systems
 Ex-Soviet Federalism – Russian Federation successor to USSR

 Some member states did not like being in Soviet Union and resist being part of new
federation
 Ex-Yugoslav Federalism – Yugoslavia an artificial state created after World

War I
 Ethnic conflict held in check under Tito; collapsed into bloody civil wars after his death
 Canadian Federalism – French-speaking Québecois poorer and feel

discriminated against
 Federal government made Canada bilingual, but Québec seeks separate status
Other notable federal states: USA, Germany, China
+
+Pros and Cons of Federal Systems
 Pros (+)
 People closest to their local governments
 People can better influence local governments
 Greater experimentation possible at local level
 Cons (-)
 Local governments may lack resources to meet many needs
 Local officials often incompetent and corrupt
 Local decision-making can be duplicative of services and poorly coordinated
with national efforts
 Can have ambiguity of who is in charge, center or local governments
+Confederate Systems
 A third alternative to unitary and federal systems.

 In confederations, the component parts (subdivisions) can override the
center.
 Confederations tend to have short lives; they either fall apart or become
federations (US civil war between the north-federation and the south-
confederation).
 Switzerland (calls itself confederation but in practice it is a federal state)
 The European Union
+
+Electoral Systems
 Single-Member Districts
 One person elected per district
 Usually requires only a plurality of votes to win district
 Third parties have little hope of winning many districts (this system favors
two-party system, like in Britain)
 Advantages:
 Politics tends to go to the center rather than to extremes
 Usually one party can get legislative majority (coalitions are rare)
 Disadvantages:
 Tends to create artificial majority, not accurately reflecting public opinion or
voting strength
 Most district seats are “safe” for one party or another due to gerrymandering
 Politics tends to be more stable and “dull” compared to multiparty systems
+ Electoral Systems
 Proportional Representation
 Multimember districts in which party gets seats in proportion to the votes it receives
 A minimum percentage of votes required to win a seat
 Advantages:
 Country’s legislature more accurately reflects public opinion and party strength
 Parties can articulate principles more clearly as they don’t have to appeal to broad center
of spectrum
 Disadvantages:
 Much party splintering leading to multiparty systems
 Often coalitions required which tend to be unstable and unable to make important
decisions
British Columbia, Canada
House of Representatives
2012
IF THERE WERE PROPORTIONAL
ELECTORAL SYSTEM IN THE USA
+ States and the Economy
 Key questions: How much of economy should state control,
and how much national wealth should be redistributed to poorer
citizens?
 Laissez-faire – Government owns little industry and

redistributes little as welfare
 Welfare state – Government owns little industry but

redistributes wealth to less well-off: welfare social democracies
of Scandinavia
+
Welfare Expenditures on:
 Benefits for widows & orphans
 Benefits for the elderly and the disabled
 Medical coverage
 Veterans’ benefits
 Unemployment compensation and unemployment salary
 Child support
+States and the Economy
 Statism – Government owns much major industry but
redistributes little, as in French monarchy; State-owned firms
often inefficient and operate at a loss
 Socialism
– State ownership of industry and extensive welfare;
Soviet Union main example, worked poorly
 Typically,governments combine elements of these systems;

U.S., touted for capitalism, both regulates industry and
provides welfare such as social security
+ States and the Economy
 Ina laissez-faire system, the government owns little or no industry

and redistributes little in the form of welfare programs. The theory
here is that private enterprise and individual initiative make a nation
both free and prosperous.
A welfare state owns little or no industry but does redistribute wealth
to the less well-off. Sometimes known as “social democracies,” the
welfare states of northwest Europe offer “cradle-to-grave” benefits in
health insurance, child care, job training, and retirement funds. To pay
for this, they charge the world’s highest taxes—in Sweden and
Denmark, about 50 percent of GDP. Industry, though, is private and
moneymaking.
 Ina statist system, the state (meaning the national government) is the number-one capitalist,
owning and running much major industry but providing few welfare benefits. it typically
includes state ownership of railroads, steel mills, banks, oil, and other big enterprises. Small
and medium business is left in private hands. Many developing countries have followed statist
models with the argument that only the government has the money, ideas, and talent to start up
new industries. The economic results suggest state-owned firms are inefficient because they
are run by bureaucrats and face no competition; often they operate at a loss and have to be
subsidized by the national treasury.
A socialist system practices both state ownership and extensive welfare benefits. Government
owns nearly all the means of production, claiming it runs the economy in the interests of the
society as a whole. However, the collapse of Communist regimes (which called themselves
“socialist”; we called them “Communist”) indicates they worked poorly.
 In actual practice, governments often combine elements of these four systems.

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INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL SCIENCE

Assist. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Karahöyük

(Eduardo Verdugo/AP Photo)

 Nation – a population with sense of self, shared history, culture, and

 State – governmental structure, usually sovereign and powerful to

 States typically create nations, not other way around

 Political institutions are working structures of government

 Powers of institutions created by forceful personalities

 Good institutions are flexible and evolve; institutions give

 Institutions greater than individual leaders

 Weak states – crime penetrates politics; government unable to fight lawlessness,

 The earliest and most famous classification of governments was

 A monarchy, according to Aristotle, is one person ruling in the

 Aristocracy, Greek for rule of the best (aristos), is several persons

 Aristotle saw the polity (what we might call constitutional

 Several figurehead monarchies (monarchies that have effective parliaments) exist

King Abdullah plays with a Saudi princeling at a festival. Saudi Arabia is

 A unitary system includes centralization of power in a nation’s capital

 Ex-Soviet Federalism – Russian Federation successor to USSR

 Ex-Yugoslav Federalism – Yugoslavia an artificial state created after World

 Canadian Federalism – French-speaking Québecois poorer and feel

 Can have ambiguity of who is in charge, center or local governments

 A third alternative to unitary and federal systems.

 Laissez-faire – Government owns little industry and

 Welfare state – Government owns little industry but

 Benefits for widows & orphans

 Benefits for the elderly and the disabled

 Unemployment compensation and unemployment salary

 Typically,governments combine elements of these systems;

 Ina laissez-faire system, the government owns little or no industry

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