To best describe the attitude, which seems to be the same all over the country, around the Irish voting system and general elections I have decided to look back to Charlie Chaplin’s ‘The Great Dictator’ speech. Nearing the end of this speech he says, “In the 17th Chapter of St Luke it is written: the Kingdom of God is within man - not one man nor a group of men, but in all men! In you! You, the people have the power - the power to create machines. The power to create happiness! You, the people, have the power to make this life free and beautiful, to make this life a wonderful adventure. Then - in the name of democracy - let us use that power - let us all unite. Let us fight for a new world - a decent world that will give men a chance to work - that will give youth a future and old age a security. By the promise of these things, brutes have risen to power. But they lie! They do not fulfil that promise. They never will!” (Charlie Chaplin: The Great Dictator 's Speech, 2016).This represents people’s feelings toward the voting system, they want to feel that they have the power to evoke change on a national level, but they have been lied to before by “brutes”. We question whether or not we truly have the power to change or is it all simply nullified by coalitions. Over the years, each generation seems to pose a question regarding Irish politics, ‘whether or not the electoral system is dysfunctional in its approach and should we replace it with something different’ maybe a mixed
A majority, held in restraint by constitutional checks and limitations, and always changing easily with deliberate changes of popular opinions and sentiments, is the only true sovereign of a free people. Whoever rejects it, does, of necessity, fly to anarchy or to despotism” (Basler,
This view is consistent with the theories of David Mayhew (The Electoral Connection, 1974) who asserts that the desire for
However, contrary to popular belief, democracy, if not implemented properly, can be a “slow, messy, combative and often inefficient form of government” as
One strength of a political party is that they are “essential institutions for the operation of the American government” (Barker, 2016, p. 1, para. 1). One of the functions of the political party is to be the middle person between citizens and “their elected government” (Barker, 2016, p. 4, para. 2) so that the people can feel as if their voices will be heard and the issues will be resolved. Although political parties should be for the people, one of the weaknesses is that “many believe that the major parties do not do an adequate job of
Legislative and judicial decisions are the results of faction, as the decisions made affect “the rights of large bodies of citizens”. Justice would balance the views of each side, “and the most numerous party… or… the most powerful faction must be expected to prevail”. Madison stated that a single, uniform party in power will adopt legislation that benefited the class that party represented, but allowing more parties and therefore more people to participate makes the legislative process more democratic and less like a monarchical form of government. The thesis is extended: “The inference to which we are brought is, that the CAUSES of faction cannot be removed, and that relief is only to be sought in the means of controlling its EFFECTS”. It is the goal of government to then limit the extent to which factions influence politics through partisanship, so as “to preserve the spirit and the form of popular government”.
Proponents of the system accuse current skepticisms of being partisan, and the skeptics of being “sore losers”. However, defenders of the Electoral College, such as Guelzo and
“Elections are events,” says Orr, arguing that convenience voting takes the historical and communal factors out of the voting equation. The idea of voting on days other than Election Day is still deemed untraditional even though, for instance, postal voting has been around for over a century now. People use convenience voting as alternatives to Election Day, they do not use Election Day as an alternative to convenience voting. This indicates that there is something special about voting on Election Day. Arguably, had voting been convenient on Election Day, people would rather that than use any forms of convenience
Australia is a Democracy Never before have there been so many democracies in the world or so many competitive elections conducted at national, subnational and region levels. Democracy is now prescribed as inseparable from good governance and an antidote to corruption. The key aspects of what makes Australia a democracy being the electoral role, Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), referendumsm, the rule of law The separate colonies of Australia gained self-government during the nineteenth century and less than half a century later Australia became the first nation to vote itself into existence through popular referendum. How does Australia’s democracy in today’s modern age stack up on those early days of a fledgling democracy.
The United States currently faces a severe problem with one of their governmental processes. In the democratic system of the United States, politicians are elected by voting from the citizens, in most cases. The problem the United States is facing is that people are no longer voting in elections for officials. This problem is discussed in the article, “In praise of low voter turnout”, written by Charles Krauthammer. The main idea behind this article is that voters are no longer interested in politics, as they were in previous generations.
Madison first defines the “violence of faction” as he explains that governments often make decisions by the “superior force of an interested and overbearing majority” instead of according to the “rules of justice.” In framing this situation, he explains the issue that majority factions or parties in governments have, in the past, had the ability to rule without consideration of minority parties. Outlining possible solutions for this problem, Madison continues to explain that the causes of parties cannot be removed without destroying people’s freedom to make their own choices. This destruction would counter Madison’s purpose of removing factions in the first place, as it would inhibit people’s liberty. Using this logic, Madison asserts an inevitability to the formation of parties and thus concludes that the government must instead control their effects by either preventing “the same passion or interest in a majority” or controlling the “number and local situation” of the majority.
In an epic political move, a young Senator from California, Richard M. Nixon, took to the television, to apologetically address the accusations that he was using campaign donations for personal expenses. Through a brilliant speech, reaching over sixty million Americans, which is now known to all as the "Checkers speech," Nixon went live and blatantly informed the American people of his life's expenses, argued that public office candidates should not have to be wealthy in order to run for government; and even went as far as to quote the honest Abraham Lincoln with reference to the common people. On September 23rd, 1952, Nixon broadcast his courageous and triumphant speech. "I have a theory, too, that the best and only answer to a smear or
All throughout history, occurrences of oppression and invasion have happened all around the world. The rights and freedom of innocent lives have been taken. The people with power have abused it and become tyrannical and self-centered. The innocent begin to rise against the malicious leaders trying to control their lives. Even through times of downfall and nonsuccess, humanity continues to fight back.
In the United States, people always talk about freedom and equality. Especially they want elections could be more democratic. In American Democracy in Peril, Hudson’s main argument regarding chapter five “Election Without the People’s Voice,” is if elections want to be democratic, they must meet three essential criteria, which are to provide equal representation of all citizens, to be mechanisms for deliberation about public policy issues, and to control what government does. Unfortunately, those points that Hudson mentions are what American elections do not have. American elections do not provide equal representation to everyone in the country.
The political party model then spread over many parts of Western Europe, including France and Germany, over the 19th century. Since then, they have become the most common political system in the world. In this essay, we will show how political parties are essential to ensuring democracy. We will also show that there are unavoidable negative consequences to the party system. One of the fundamental tenants of democracy is the
Many people believe that the election plays the most important role in democracy. Because a free and fair election holds the government responsible and forces it to behave on voter's interest. However, some scholars find evidence that election itself is not enough to hold politicians responsible if the institutions are not shaping incentives in a correct way. In other words, the role of the election on democracy, whether it helps to serve the interest of the public or specific groups, depends on other political institutions. I