Glossary of terms

• apathy – the absence of interest or enthusiasm about a subject, usually reflected in inactivity

• authoritarianism – government that is imposed on citizens regardless of their consent

• autocracy – rule by one supreme ruler

• backbench MP – an MP who isn’t a minister or a member of the opposition cabinet

• by-election – choosing an MP when the seat becomes vacant (eg Rochester & Strood, November 2014)

• cabinet – the heads of government departments. The cabinet has the say over which legislation is introduced into parliament with the aim of making it into law

• catch-all party – a party that develops policies that will appeal to the widest range of voters, by contrast with a pragmatic party

• citizens’ juries – ‘normal’ people judging and giving feedback on policies

• constitutional democracy- a form of democracy that operates within a clear constitutional framework that both disperses the government power and protects minorities and individuals

• constitutional democracy - upholding individual freedoms and minority rights (eg USA)

• constitutions – rules that govern the government itself

• crowding out – a Thatcherite theory that an over-large stat damages the performance of private businesses by depriving them of necessary resources

• democracy – government ‘of the people, by the people, for the people’; where each citizen has an equal say and majority view should win out

• democratic deficit – where a country or institution is not as democratic as it should be

• descriptive representation -  representatives should push their constituents’ views and be a microcosm of larger society

• devolution – where some power was moved away from the government in Westminster and handed to the people via an elected parliament in Scotland or elected assembly in Wales and Northern Ireland

• direct democracy – the people make decisions directly without representatives; majority view prevails

• Doctrine of the Mandate – the representatives voted into power have the right/obligation to put their manifesto into action

• election – where citizens have one vote to select their representatives or leaders

• elective dictatorship – coined by Lord Hailsham in 1976; PM has almost dictatorial power as controls the Cabinet and the majority in the Commons so can get laws passed easily

• European election – voting for your MEP by party under proportional representation

• faction – a group of like-minded politicians, usually formed around a key leader or in support of a set of preferred policies

• G20 – G8 plus a dozen nations whose economies are developing fast

• G8 – group of the eight most developed economies

• general election – voting for one party to rule the country via voting for the MP for your constituency; the leader of the party with the plurality of votes becomes PM

• government – a set of institutions through which the general rules of society (usually called laws) are made and enforced; the machinery through which politics operates

• legitimacy – a result accurately reflects public opinion

• legitimate power – power that people believe they should obey rather than obey through fear or intimidation

• liberal democracy - representative democracy with limited government to ensure protection and maintenance of individual freedoms (eg UK)

• local election – voting for councils on a regional/borough/county level

• majoritarian democracy – a form of democracy that is based on the principle of majority rule and emphasises the general or collective interests of society, rather than particular interests

• majoritarian democracy – majority views take precedence (eg UK)

• majoritarian – electoral system where usually a larger party wins with a higher proportion of seats than proportion of votes they gain; more chance of a single party winning a parliamentary majority of its own

• mandate – if a party wins power (esp. with a majority), they have the right to rule and put their manifesto in place

• manifesto – a collection of policy pledges which the leadership of the political party says it will carry out, if elected

• participation crisis – rising political apathy where people do not vote

• peers – members of the House of Lords

• pluralism – wide range of political parties representing different views

• political party – a group with similar political views/ideologies standing for election to be able to implement their policies

• politics – the activity through which people make, uphold and revise the rules under which they live

• pressure group – a group representing certain strong views trying to influence government policy without trying to win power

• progressive taxation – a taxation system in which the rich pay proportionally more in tax than the poor, usually based on graduated direct taxes

• proportional – relationship between number of votes and seats gained

• quorum - the minimum number of people whose presence is required for proper or valid decisions to be taken

• referendum – a vote on a single matter with a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer

• representative democracy – representatives act on behalf of the people and represent the people’s views

• trusteeship – we trust our representatives (MPs/MEPs etc) to act on our behalf and in our best interests using their expertise

• universal suffrage – where every person gets one vote (so long as over 18, mentally stable, not a prisoner and not a member of the House of Lords)

• voter turnout – the percentage of people registered to vote who casts a vote

• whip – someone appointed by the party leader to ensure that the party’s MPs vote the way the leader wants