Introduction to studying and researching politics Intro to Politics - Lecture 4 - Democracy and its Institutions ELECTIONS . Elections are the be all and end all of democracy - there are other parts of democracy which are just as essential - such as freedom . Elections mean that parties have to be wary of gaining votes · Poor people will vote for whoever makes promises to make them wealthier - rule by the poor . Parties make random promises that they know people want to hear and they cuss out the other parties - rule by demagogues . Illiberal democracy - systems that combine elections with restrictions on civil liberties · A majority voting bloc oppresses a minority - tyranny of the majority - majority rules on behalf of itself without thinking about people who are different - Rohingya in Burma and Kurds in Turkey . Elections are not a guarantee for having a liberal and functioning society nor a conflict free and peaceful society - the losing side may start conflict as they don't want to be oppressed e.g. Kenya 2007 . Extra features of democracy are required other than elections CONSTITUTIONS What makes a good constitution? · Codified (written downfl - harder to change - government's cannot just do as they please and change it without a lot of other people's approval · Works to separate powers - to use one institution against another - allows for accountability & checks and balances . The relevance of constitutions are not so obvious when everything is going well and normal - when there are problems, the constitution kicks in to restrict the damage . The constitution means that there are checks and balances in place to protect against hastiness with policy - means there has to be scrutiny and debate with new policies . From the start of the federal government of Germany (overturn of the Nazisfl - first line so at the heart of the constitution - human dignity and human rights - "human dignity shall be inviolable. To respect and protect it shall be the duty of all state authority" . Constitutions designed to constrain the state in exercise of executive and legislative powers - torture, capital punishment, confiscation of property without compensation · Constitutions deliberately hard to change - especially codified ones such as German and United States . The U.S supreme court has become politicised - it fills the gaps where the constitution cannot be amended
Introduction to studying and researching politics RULE OF LAW . Constitutions rely on legal system for their application . Constitutions are backed up by courts through the rule of law . Courts are their to defend individuals against the state and protect their rights . Courts can become unpopular - they can make politically unpopular decisions · Strong constitution requires strong courts . Checks and balances provide institutional safeguards for functioning of democracy Constitutions depend on people who exercise different functions and public support for them: - Courts can