Edexcel Politics 10. Comparative Approaches

Question or Term

Answer

That which is stronger in Parliament than in Congress in that parliamentary sovereignty allows it to make laws and constitutional changes and the supremacy of the Commons prevents gridlock

Those two parties the origins of which are differentiated in that the former arose out of the landed aristocracy while the latter arose in opposition to slavery and in the turmoil of the civil war

The different types of democracy and emphasised by the US and UK respectively, the former in the form of initiatives, primaries, and very regular elections, and the latter in the form of an appointed upper house, unelected head of government and no popular candidate selection

That body which is different in the UK from the US as the members of the former are vested with real administrative power and authority, making them difficult for a Prime Minister to oppose, especially when united

That approach to comparative politics the basis for which is the belief that political outcomes are largely determined by the shared ideas, values, and beliefs of different groups, which serve to drive the behaviour of their members and subscribers

Those parties the similarities between which are that they both stress minority and workers' rights, favour environmental protection, promote more equality of outcome, and support higher progressive taxes and government spending on public services and welfare, alphabetically

That voting system that is considered a principal though debatable weakness that Parliament shares with Congress

That branch of government that in 2016 in the US was just over 33.3% female and 14% ethnic minority, and in the UK was 25% female and 5% ethnic minority

That approach to comparative politics the basis for which is the assumption that individuals will act with rational self-interest to achieve or encourage particular political aims and outcomes, possibly by resisting structural and cultural factors

That body that changed with the extension of the franchise in that it lost much of its power and hereditary nature under the 1911 and 1949 Parliament Acts and 1999 House of Lords Act, becoming subservient to the elected lower house

Question or Term

Answer

Those two parties that are differentiated in the fact that the former supports limited abortion, same-sex marriage, renewable energy, national healthcare, and limited government involvement in education, while opposing capital punishment, all the reverse of the position of the latter

That which the UK Supreme Court has more of than its US counterpart in that appointments are made via an independent and apolitical Judicial Appointments Commission

Those the disadvantages of which are that they can lead to intra-party power struggles and in-fighting, potentially harming electoral performance

That the weaknesses of which are that executive branch officials can appear only before committees, the President very rarely givens direct evidence, it shares legislative power with the House, pays less consideration to constituents due to 6 year election cycles, and experiences gridlock, partisanship, and divided government

Those, five of which are used in the UK, namely; first past the post (general elections), additional member system (Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, Greater London Assembly), single transferable vote (Northern Ireland Assembly), alternative vote (Scottish local by-elections), and the supplementary vote (Mayor of London)

That UK party the origins and ideology of which are differentiated from what is most often considered its US counterpart in that it formed out of the trade union movement and has been socialist for most of its existence

That cultural background and principle Parliament is most a reflection of

The two locations from which the US and UK Supreme Courts respectively derive their power

That individual in the UK whom still holds the executive powers/roles - held by the President in the US - to veto legislation (royal prerogative) and to be the Head of State

That approach to comparative politics which is perhaps most salient in comparing elections and voting