Elections, Parties, and the Party System Malcomlson

1
Elections, Parties, and the Party
SystemMalcomlson Myers, Chapter 9 10

• Current Events
• Dan McTeagues (Lib. Pickering-Scarborough East)
  Private Members Bill
• Vancouver Quadra by-election 17 March 2008

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Elections, Parties, and the Party
SystemMalcomlson Myers, Chapter 9 10

• Elections the Electoral System
• Elections, Parties, Representation
• Canadas Electoral System
• Alternative Electoral Systems

3
Elections, Parties, and the Party
SystemMalcomlson Myers, Chapter 9 10

• What is an Electoral System?
• Electoral System the rules governing the
  translation of votes into parliamentary seats
• Main link between voters elected officials
  government
• Modern elections are primarily contested by
  political parties
• Political Party a publicly (i.e., visibly)
  organized group of people motivated by a set of
  common political ideas who try to win public
  office to translate those ideas into policies

4
Elections, Parties, and the Party
SystemMalcomlson Myers, Chapter 9 10

• Representative Democracy as a Chain of Delegation
• Strom (2000) representative democracy as a chain
  of delegation of power from voters to Parliament
  to Cabinet
• Conventions of Responsible Government speak
  primarily to nature of the Parliament Cabinet
  link in this relationship

Parliament MPs
Cabinet
Voters
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Elections, Parties, and the Party
SystemMalcomlson Myers, Chapter 9 10

• Responsible Government Electoral Representation
• Mandate view of Parliamentary Government
  Elections
• MPs compete as members of disciplined parties
• Parties issue manifestos (platforms) that MPs
  support
• Party that wins forms cabinet has mandate to
  enact its manifesto
• That partys MPs provide cabinet w. confidence
• At next election, the voters judge governing
  partys record against its pledges
• Rep-by-pop

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Elections, Parties, and the Party
SystemMalcomlson Myers, Chapter 9 10

• What principles should govern voter-to-MP link?
• Three Theories of Parliamentary Representation
• MP as Delegate MP transmits districts views
• MP as Trustee MP uses best judgement
• MP as Party Member MP votes the party line