AQA AS Politics - 5 Mark Question Challenge

Thanx

Original post by govtandpolitics

Legitimacy - A contested concept, usually equated with rightfulness. A political system is legitimate when it is based on the consent of the people - winning an election gives a government legitimacy. Political actions are also legitimate if they follow from agreed laws and procedures. Citizens in a liberal democracy accept the legitimacy of a government, even if they did not vote for it, if it acts within its lawful powers.

So basically, legitimacy is the legal right or authority to exercise power. A government claims legitimacy as a result of the mandate it secures at a general election.

:smile:

Reply 22

Cal1999

13

Original post by unsa98

could someone come up with a definition for legitimacy (don't know what to wrote about thi term)?
thanks
it would be very much appreciated

It would be great if somebody could. I'm struggling with this one, too!

Reply 23

Original post by roselondon2

This is a great idea! Although can no one judge me for my terrible politics knowledge. I'm hoping for a miracle over the next week during my revision!
Explain the term Indirect Democracy [5 Marks]
Indirect democracy is a system of political participation in which citizens elect other people (often called 'representatives' or 'delegates' :wink:

to make and vote on political decisions for them. This is opposed to a direct democracy - for example in ancient Athens - when each eligible citizen voted directly on each law passed. However in countries with a large population, a direct democracy is not practical. The Representative Model of democracy (developed by Edmund Burke) allows citizens to elect a representative which then vote in the legislature body. In the UK, MP's serve this function and vote in the House of Commons on behalf of their constituents. However, there is an issue with MP's really serving their constituents - although technically they should vote according to their constituent's interests, they still have a degree of autonomy. Additionally they have to represent their parties view at the same time. Another method of indirect democracy is the Delegate model, used in the US, where representatives have no autonomy of their own.

Next question:
Explain the term Pluralism [5 Marks]

This is the length of your 5 markers? This is more like a 10 marker, way way way too long for a 5 marker.

Reply 24

I must say that some of your 5 markers look very long, and even if you can write insanely fast, there is no need to write so much to achieve 5 marks, extra time could be spent more efficiently elsewhere, such as on the 25 markers.

Try to aim for 5-6 reasonably short and clear sentences that get to the point.

For example for the question 'define the term mandate' I would do:

The term mandate describes the authority given by the electorate to the winning party to govern. This is commonly achieved in the UK through a general election; and was most recently evident in 2015 when the conservatives won a majority, therefore securing a mandate. A mandate is also given to an individual MP by their constituency, to act as its representative. In the UK, an MP doesn't need to be part of the winning party in order to still be able to represent their constituency in parliament.

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 25

Could someone put up a definition for peak/umbrella groups?
This is for pressure groups
Thanks

Reply 26

Original post by govtandpolitics

Legitimacy - A contested concept, usually equated with rightfulness. A political system is legitimate when it is based on the consent of the people - winning an election gives a government legitimacy. Political actions are also legitimate if they follow from agreed laws and procedures. Citizens in a liberal democracy accept the legitimacy of a government, even if they did not vote for it, if it acts within its lawful powers.

So basically, legitimacy is the legal right or authority to exercise power. A government claims legitimacy as a result of the mandate it secures at a general election.

:smile:

This is misleading, there is a difference between legitimacy and democratic legitimacy which is what you're describing, for example the government of Saudi Arabia is seen as legitimate, but certainly not democratic. So be careful with the wording of your answer when defining it.

Legitimacy is the acceptance of the people of an authority or regime to govern. Legitimacy can be achieved in a number of ways, in the UK it is achieved through democratic means, such as a general election or referendum. This was evident in 2015 with the win of the conservatives which allowed David Cameron to form a legitimate government. However legitimacy can also be inherited, as seen in some autocratic countries such as Saudi Arabia, where all political legitmacy is granted to the royal family.

Reply 27

So what ur saying is that the first definition is for democratic legitimacy. Am i correct?

Original post by SlimShady96

This is misleading, there is a difference between legitimacy and democratic legitimacy which is what you're describing, for example the government of Saudi Arabia is seen as legitimate, but certainly not democratic. So be careful with the wording of your answer when defining it.

Legitimacy is the acceptance of the people of an authority or regime to govern. Legitimacy can be achieved in a number of ways, in the UK it is achieved through democratic means, such as a general election or referendum. This was evident in 2015 with the win of the conservatives which allowed David Cameron to form a legitimate government. However legitimacy can also be inherited, as seen in some autocratic countries such as Saudi Arabia, where all political legitmacy is granted to the royal family.

Reply 28

Original post by unsa98

So what ur saying is that the first definition is for democratic legitimacy. Am i correct?

Yes, it would probably still get 4 marks though.

Reply 29

Cal1999

13

Explain the term 'Party List'

Explain the term 'Alternative Member System'

Explain the term 'Regional List'

Explain the term 'Majoritarian System'

Explain the term 'Single Transferable Vote'

Reply 30

Okay. That's fine. Thanx

Original post by SlimShady96

Yes, it would probably still get 4 marks though.

Reply 31

NSAMM

4

In unit 2 is there a particular order for the topics to come in? I know parliament and constitution well but not so confident with judiciary and PM/cabinet.could they ask Parliament and Constitution in the same section??

Reply 32

BirdIsWord

17

Using your own knowledge as well as the extract, identify and explain two factors that mightexplain the rise of social movements in recent years.

Can somebody answer this?

Reply 33

Original post by Tommy1boy

5 mark questions are easy way to pick up marks. I will start off by setting a 5 mark question, then someone answers it and sets another 5 mark question for someone to answer. This way we all get the benefits of good knowledge and style revision. I will do one of the 5 mark questions as well, when I see one that I like. I will put them all in a document and upload it to the forum if we get a large amount so they are all in one place.

So lets see if anyone will actually take part,

Explain the term Indirect Democracy [5 Marks]

Indirect democracy is the opposite idea of democracy of allowing the people direct input into the political process which direct democracy offers- which originates from Athenian democracy. Indirect or representative democracy allows the electorate (the people eligible to vote in a state) to choose a candidate to represent them in the political process, through local and national elections in the UK. Edmund Burke's view of representation describes how MPs should represent the people in their constituency but also be free to exercise their own judgement- the trustee model of representation instead of the delegate model which requires MPs to conform to their political party. (He said this in his speech as MP for Bristol in 1774) The US share UK's idea of representative democracy as their electorate elect representatives from each state to govern them in the House of Representatives in Washington DC.

Hi, this is a little rushed, but would you be able to give me a mark?

Reply 34

Original post by roselondon2

Okay, how about - Describe and explain two disadvantages of the UK's two party system? :smile:

One flaw in the UK's two party system is that it prevents minority parties from entering into Westminster. For example, the FPTP voting system produced a general election resuly in 1983 that only allowed 23 seats for the Liberal Democrats on a 26% vote share, and similiarly in the 2015 general election, UKIP recieved 13% of the vote share but only one single vote (which was due to UKIP's lack of concentrated support in areas). This undermines the UK's representative democracy as it disallows those voters who voted for these two parties to be fairly representative in Westminster therefore these voters may become apathetic towards voting in future elections.

Another flaw in the UK's two party system is that the electorate has limited choice in who to vote for because of the strong presence of the two main parties; Conservative and Labour in the UK's political landscape and democracy. For example, excluding the War Time Coalition and the recent 2010 Conservative-LibDem coalition, the two parties have enjoyed long periods in government the Conservaties with Thatcher and Major's government in 1979-1990 of 18 years while Labour enjoyed 13 years from 1997-2010. The FPTP helps create landslide victories for these two parties called the winner's bonus which restricts vote choice at polling stations. Also, the two main parties have become ideologically similar too as Blair's New Labour policies move the party away from socialism into the centre while Cameron's Liberal Conservatism does the same.

Reply 35

Original post by Warriner4

One flaw in the UK's two party system is that it prevents minority parties from entering into Westminster. For example, the FPTP voting system produced a general election resuly in 1983 that only allowed 23 seats for the Liberal Democrats on a 26% vote share, and similiarly in the 2015 general election, UKIP recieved 13% of the vote share but only one single vote (which was due to UKIP's lack of concentrated support in areas). This undermines the UK's representative democracy as it disallows those voters who voted for these two parties to be fairly representative in Westminster therefore these voters may become apathetic towards voting in future elections.

Another flaw in the UK's two party system is that the electorate has limited choice in who to vote for because of the strong presence of the two main parties; Conservative and Labour in the UK's political landscape and democracy. For example, excluding the War Time Coalition and the recent 2010 Conservative-LibDem coalition, the two parties have enjoyed long periods in government the Conservaties with Thatcher and Major's government in 1979-1990 of 18 years while Labour enjoyed 13 years from 1997-2010. The FPTP helps create landslide victories for these two parties called the winner's bonus which restricts vote choice at polling stations. Also, the two main parties have become ideologically similar too as Blair's New Labour policies move the party away from socialism into the centre while Cameron's Liberal Conservatism does the same.

I just counted that that would be worth 10 marks.

Reply 36

Original post by SlimShady96

I just counted that that would be worth 10 marks.

Thank you very much :smile:

Reply 37

Original post by Cal1999

Explain the term 'Party List'

Explain the term 'Alternative Member System'

Explain the term 'Regional List'

Explain the term 'Majoritarian System'

Explain the term 'Single Transferable Vote'

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Explain the term 'Alternative Member System'

The alternative member system (AMS) is a type of voting system that is designed to produce proportionate outcomes in elections.The voters are given two votes, 1 vote for selecting a single member for the legislative branch through the FPTP system and another vote for a member for the region. This hybrid system, which is used in the Scottish, Welsh and London assemblies has the aim to reduce the number of wasted votes, encouraging split ticket voting and increasing voter choice and proportionality of the result. However, what it fails to do is produce stable governments if used in Westminster as there is a likeliness of coalitions being produced, but also the multi member constituencies will have less clearer link with their constituents, making it difficult to govern them.
(This took me five minutes, please could you give me a mark please? )

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Explain the term 'Majoritarian System'

A majoritarian system is a system in which a majority of votes should be won by a candidate in order for them to be elected. The difference between this system and the plurality system is that the plurality system requires one more vote than the other candidates for them to win, whereas through the majoritarian system, the candidate needs to achieve a majority or 50% of the votes casted to win the seat. At the moment, the UK general elections operate with a plurality system, FPTP, but the new electoral systems that were introduced to the devolved bodies by Tony Blair in 1998-2000 like the Alternative Vote, Supplementary Vote and STV, they need a majority of votes for the candidate to win the seat which is seen to be a fairer system than the plurality system, however it takes longer to end up with the winner.
(This also was timed, but I feel this was really hard for me but I hope that I could score 4 marks hopefully?)
Thanks :smile:

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Reply 38

Which topic(s) are these definitions for?

Original post by Warriner4

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Explain the term 'Alternative Member System'

The alternative member system (AMS) is a type of voting system that is designed to produce proportionate outcomes in elections.The voters are given two votes, 1 vote for selecting a single member for the legislative branch through the FPTP system and another vote for a member for the region. This hybrid system, which is used in the Scottish, Welsh and London assemblies has the aim to reduce the number of wasted votes, encouraging split ticket voting and increasing voter choice and proportionality of the result. However, what it fails to do is produce stable governments if used in Westminster as there is a likeliness of coalitions being produced, but also the multi member constituencies will have less clearer link with their constituents, making it difficult to govern them.
(This took me five minutes, please could you give me a mark please? )

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Explain the term 'Majoritarian System'

A majoritarian system is a system in which a majority of votes should be won by a candidate in order for them to be elected. The difference between this system and the plurality system is that the plurality system requires one more vote than the other candidates for them to win, whereas through the majoritarian system, the candidate needs to achieve a majority or 50% of the votes casted to win the seat. At the moment, the UK general elections operate with a plurality system, FPTP, but the new electoral systems that were introduced to the devolved bodies by Tony Blair in 1998-2000 like the Alternative Vote, Supplementary Vote and STV, they need a majority of votes for the candidate to win the seat which is seen to be a fairer system than the plurality system, however it takes longer to end up with the winner.
(This also was timed, but I feel this was really hard for me but I hope that I could score 4 marks hopefully?)
Thanks :smile:

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Reply 39