In some cases, the pressure groups even undermine their internal democracy as the minority (the leaders) voices are heard rather than the majority (the members). Pressure groups could be said to promote democracy by educating the electorate. They do this by making them more educated and more informed through political discussions and debates. Pressure groups widen the information available to the public. Without the media and pressure groups, the public would have to rely on information given from a narrow range of sources with limited viewpoints; mostly from the major political parties e.g.
Using the sources and your own knowledge, explain what is meant by ‘democracy’? Democracy is a system of government where all eligible members of a state, vote for a leader for their country. There are 2 main types of democracy, direct and representative. Direct democracy is where the people decide on the outcome directly however this type of democracy wouldn’t work in countries such as the UK as it would be too hard to get everyone together to vote and too difficult to make sure everyone is happy with the final outcome. The other type of democracy is representative democracy where all eligible people come together to vote on a representative e.g.
Do pressure groups strengthen or weaken democracy? It is extremely difficult to reach a conclusion on whether groups are good or otherwise for democracy but it is important to realise how they can be both beneficial and damaging to it. In debating the matter we face the difficulty that the group’s methods, aims and composition vary significantly and so they cannot all be thrown into the same group. So while we make comments on judgements they are only generalised and do not apply to all groups in all circumstances. Government’s aims are always to please the public, or do the best for the state and so these groups clearly show the government what a certain band of people wish to happen.
Direct democracy is a “form of democracy that is based on the direct and unmediated and continuous participation of citizens in the tasks of government.”3. Examples of direct democracy include; joining pressure groups, taking part in referendums and contacting local MPs. This essay will be assessing the advantages of direct democracy. Increased Political Participation. Direct democracy allows the electorate to have more opportunities to take part in the political process, as forms of direct democracy such as referendums, canvassing, protesting, joining pressure groups and boycotting products; allow for the electorate to choose a form of participation rather than only being able to vote after governmental terms are served by parties, therefore direct democracy would moot Jean Jacques Rousseau's opinion that “The English people believes itself to be free; it is gravely mistaken; it is free only during election of members of parliament”4.
Whereas if the representatives were to vote on their behalf it may be based on their views and interest, having referendums prevents the government from making unpopular decisions. This will improve the UK’s democratic system as the views of the citizens are clearer and representative of citizens who are affected by the decision being made. However others argue that the general public is not educated enough to make these big decisions therefore it would lead to the wrong decisions being made which
Political parties are a big part of the government. The meaning of a political party is “a team of men and women seeking to control the government apparatus by gaining office in a duly constituted election” (Edwards 242). The tasks of the parties are to pick candidates, run the campaigns, give views to voters, articulate policies, and coordinate policymaking. The party in the electorate consists of symbolic images and ideas. Most voters have a party image, which is when they think the party stands for.
For example, we elect politicians at the local, county, state, and federal levels. We elect mayors, council members, congressmen, senators, and a president to represent us.A democratic republic is not the same as a direct democracy. In a direct democracy, all citizens, not just elected representatives, create and vote directly on each law. The Founding Fathers of the United States did not want, or trust, direct democracy. Click for Republic or Democracy?
Representation: Make sure our views are heard in the government. A. 3 MODELS OF REPRESENTATION All members of Congress live in 2 worlds. In Washington they spend time dealing with the great issues of national concern. But they also spend much of their time travelling back to their district or state, where they meet with constituents and give speeches to local groups.
As public interest groups have developed and flourished, the more successful groups have imitated narrower special interest groups to the extent that they can afford to do so, by utilizing specialized professional help from lawyers, consultants, marketers, and lobbyists. But in general, most public interest groups tend to have fewer resources at their disposal than special interest groups. According to the text, majority of public interest groups have lobbyists and some staff, yet they have no financial resources of the business and professional groups. Nonetheless, the purpose of the public interest groups is to project the voice of the citizens and influence the government policies and obtain benefits for the society. Moreover, they are trying to promote better opportunities that will offer health care and other human services to the Texas
To what extent have constitutional reforms introduced since 1997 made the UK more democratic? There have been many reforms made in the UK since 1997, some say these have made the UK more democratic and others say they’ve made the UK less democratic. In this essay I will be explaining some of the effects of these changes and whether or not it has made the UK more democratic as a result. The word democratic spans from the idea of the political ideology surrounding democracy. Democracy is a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives.