This gives them opportunities to participate in a democracy as it encourages interest in the parties running for power. It allows them to see the different parties, for those who vote for the same party every election. Parties also help people participate by party political broadcasts, canvassing, conferences and policy forums. These allow the public to understand more about the parties individually and could potentially encourage them to vote for the party that best represents them. Having conferences gives them the opportunity to participate in democracy because from listening to speeches by leaders, voters are more likely to be informed of what policies are going to be implemented by that party if they gain power which would encourage them to vote in the general election.
This makes sure that the public’s views and interested are truly presented, rather than being distorted by politicians who want more people to support their party. Another reason as to why we should have more referenda in the UK is that it will politically educate more people. It allows the electorate to become more politically engaged, giving them a stronger incentive to think and act in a political way. It is thought that if there had been more referenda in Wales before the devolution referenda in 1997, there would have been a larger turn out, and therefore a better representation of what the Welsh public actually wanted. Referenda allow for a more responsive government.
It is clear that pressure groups do gain influence over election results as there are concerns that pressure groups play a too significant role in elections, potentially making politicians more responsive to their agenda than to the concerns of the voters. This concern has transpired due to a pressure group tactic that helps gain influence with those elected that monitors a politicians’ response to a pressure groups’ agenda. The tactic involves pressure groups issuing “reports cards,” on how much support their agenda has received, those with the highest grades can expect considerable support in their campaigns. This tactic allows pressure groups to constantly influence election results as politicians know the consequences of their actions if they go against the pressure groups agenda. For example in 2006 Republican Senator Mike DeWine of Ohio received a grade F from the NRA with the group vowing to punish him in the 2006 election and contributed to his defeat.
Pressure groups have had a positive effect on UK democracy. It is clear that though the vast amount of pressure groups that will support and oppose each other, they are able to offer the UK electorate and younger peer groups a vast amount of information. This information should be independent of government beliefs or ideals and so enhances our knowledge
An example of one of these riots is the ‘May Day Riots’ of 2001. Another argument for the greater use of direct democracy is that people are becoming increasingly well informed and educated and so can make their own judgements. This is a good argument for direct democracy as there is now a greater aspect of politics and current world accusations, with things such as the News in which
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. As it allows the citizens to be able to participate in many forms and at any time. In support to this, statistics show that forms of direct democracy and non electoral participation are rising among the public. The percentage of citizens that took part in boycotting products for ethical reasons rose to 31% in 2011 from 4% in 1984. The number of people who contacted the media for a
Demos and Crasos: Power and People. It derives from giving the power to run the country to the people. Some may say that there are ways of improving democracy in the UK, whereas others say there is no point in changing anything if it works. In this essay I intend to look at whether it should be changed and critically analyse each point to make an unbiased and justified decision. One potential way in which democracy could be improved is to have more frequent elections.
Pluralists would say that Pressure Group power is democratically based and so the larger you are the more spread that power is. The bigger you are it's generally felt you represent public opinion more. Government doesn't want to upset a large group of people and so their vote carries some weight. RSPB, NSCPCC, and National Trust. Large membership so perhaps they carry some
This is why some argue that the current Westminster electoral system is in desperate need of reform. There are many arguments in favour of reforming the current First Past the Post electoral system to a more proportional system, such as the Single Transferable Vote, the Closed Party List System, and the Additional Member System. This is also known as electoral fairness. Supporters of Proportional Representation argue that a party’s strength should reflect the support it has in the country- which is essential to a democracy. The current First Past the Post system leads to an unfair system of representation.
Citizens must be engage in the decision making because this will have great impact on their life, therefore they should vote to express their opinion in the government. Voting is a privilege and a responsibility to citizen to participate in public affairs and choose those who should govern them. In the democratic process an election allows people to be represented in the political institution and now with the modern technology, it is easy to communicate and investigate the candidate and to make a decision on the party that will provide better services. Whether a citizen is voting individually or belong to an interest group donating funds will help him play a role in the influence on political