Disability-inclusive electoral systems: analyzing the Philippine electoral policy using the disability convention (DisCo) policy framework

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
John Paul P. Cruz
Keyword(s):  
Equal Opportunity ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Minority Community ◽  
Leading Role ◽  
Electoral Laws ◽  
Laws And Policies

For more than a century now, the Philippines has been at the forefront of democracy in the Southeast Asian region. Since the early 1990s, the country has sought to institutionalize democratic processes, which aim to meaningfully engage Filipinos in the public and political spheres. In line with its efforts of strengthening its electoral systems, it has also taken a leading role in the region in promoting and protecting the rights of voters with disabilities by becoming one of the first States Parties to ratify the United Nations convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). A key provision of the UNCRPD is affording voters with disabilities the equal opportunity to engage in every electoral process on an equal basis with other abled-bodied voters. However, in spite of recent developments, the Philippines has yet to effectively implement disability-inclusive electoral policies and processes that would not only engage able-bodied Filipino voters but also one of the country’s largest minority community—Filipino voters with disabilities. This paper examines the effectiveness of the Philippine government in ensuring that Filipino voters with disabilities are guaranteed with and are able to exercise their right to suffrage. Using a mixed method approach and the disability convention (DisCo) policy framework, this research evaluates the content of existing legislative measures relating to the country’s electoral system, the corresponding executive and budgetary support to implement electoral laws and policies for Filipino voters with disabilities, the administrative and coordinating capacity of implementing electoral agencies, the prevailing attitude of the society towards Filipino voters with disabilities, and the degree of participation of Filipino voters with disabilities in the development of Philippine electoral laws and policies.

15. Institutional Design in New Democracies

2018 ◽  
pp. 228-238
Author(s):  
Matthijs Bogaards
Keyword(s):  
Party System ◽  
Institutional Design ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
New Democracies ◽  
Ethnic Conflicts ◽  
Consociational Democracy ◽  
Electoral Laws ◽  
Established Democracies ◽  
Electoral Law

This chapter focuses on electoral systems and institutional design in new democracies. It first compares Maurice Duverger’s electoral laws with those of Giovanni Sartori before discussing the main insights from the literature on electoral systems in established democracies as well as evidence from new democracies. It then considers the impact of the electoral law on the type of party system and its role as intermediary between society and government in plural societies. It also examines the party system as an independent variable, along with dependent variables such as the number of political parties, social cleavages, and presidentialism. Finally, it discusses consociational democracy and how electoral system design can be used in managing ethnic conflicts.

Electoral systems applied to the Iraqi parliament elections after 2003 (comparative analytical study)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kurdistan Saeed ◽  
Chawan Salah
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Party System ◽  
Analytical Study ◽  
Separation Of Powers ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Electoral Laws ◽  
The Right

This study deals with the electoral systems applied in Iraq after 2003 for the Iraqi Parliament elections. The issue's importance lies in the fact that elections are the legitimate means adopted by modern political systems based on the separation of powers. Therefore, after changing the political system in Iraq in 2003 from a one-party system to a democratic parliamentary system, the permanent constitution of 2005 granted the right to political participation for citizens. Including the right to participate in elections through nomination or candidacy for the Iraqi Council of Representatives, this study examines the electoral systems applied after 2003 and the reasons for the instability of the Iraqi parliament elections on a specific law. The study dealt with the types of electoral systems by focusing on the concept and emergence of elections and the most critical electoral systems adopted by political systems. Furthermore, the electoral systems applied after 2003 in the Iraqi parliament elections by focusing on the electoral laws or their amendments that preceded each electoral cycle since 2003 until now. The study concluded that the electoral system in Iraq was not legally stable; several amendments have been made to the laws regulating the elections for the House of Representatives. So the two elections did not repeat under one law because of political parties' criticism leveled at it. Moreover, the attempt by the large parliamentary blocs, through their control of the Iraqi Council of Representatives, to legislate laws that limit the victory of the blocs and small parties.

7. The Electoral System

2021 ◽  
pp. 168-196
Author(s):  
Ian Loveland
Keyword(s):  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Recent Survey ◽  
Election Campaigns ◽  
Constitutional Order ◽  
Large Group ◽  
System P ◽  
Electoral Laws ◽  
Significant Mechanism ◽  
Governmental System

A country’s electoral systems are perhaps the most significant mechanism within its constitutional order to ensure that the country’s laws and governmental system attract what Jefferson termed ‘the consent of the governed’. A recent survey of electoral laws in modern democratic societies identified six fundamental characteristics of democratic electoral systems: (i) that virtually all adults may vote; (ii) that elections are held regularly; (iii) that no large group of citizens is prohibited from fielding candidates; (iv) that all legislative seats are contested; (v) that election campaigns are conducted fairly; and (vi) that votes are secretly cast and accurately counted. This chapter examines how well Britain’s electoral system satisfies these tests, first tracing the evolution of the democratic electoral system, followed by a review of the contemporary electoral process.

15. Electoral Systems and Institutional Design in New Democracies

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthijs Bogaards
Keyword(s):  
Party System ◽  
Institutional Design ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
New Democracies ◽  
Ethnic Conflicts ◽  
Consociational Democracy ◽  
Electoral Laws ◽  
Established Democracies ◽  
Electoral Law

This chapter focuses on electoral systems and institutional design in new democracies. It first compares Maurice Duverger’s electoral laws with those of Giovanni Sartori before discussing the main insights from the literature on electoral systems in established democracies as well as evidence from new democracies. It then considers the impact of the electoral law on the type of party system and its role as intermediary between society and government in plural societies. It also examines the party system as independent variable, along with dependent variables such as the number of political parties, social cleavages and presidentialism. Finally, it discusses consociational democracy and how electoral system design can be used in managing ethnic conflicts.

The Never-ending Story of Law and Electoral System in Lesotho

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hoolo Nyane
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Prime Minister ◽  
Legal Discourse ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Constitutional Democracy ◽  
Electoral Outcomes ◽  
Electoral Laws ◽  
Run Up ◽  
Mixed Electoral System ◽  
2012 Election

While electoral discontent has been the enduring feature of constitutional democracy in Lesotho since independence, disagreement over electoral system is a fairly recent phenomenon. When the country attained independence in 1966 from Britain, electoral system was not necessarily one of the topical issues of pre-independence constitutional negotiations. The major issues were the powers of the monarch, the office of prime minister, the command of the army and many more.  It was taken for granted that the country would use the British-based plurality electoral system.  This is the system which the country used until early 2000s when the electoral laws were reformed to anchor a new mixed electoral system.  When the new electoral laws were ultimately passed in 2001, the country transitioned from a plurality electoral system to a two-ballot mixed member proportional system. By this time, electoral system had acquired prominence in politico-legal discourse in Lesotho.  In the run-up to 2007 elections, bigger political parties orchestrated the manipulation of electoral laws which culminated in clearly distorted electoral outcomes. The manipulations motivated further reforms in the run-up to 2012 election which resulted in the single-ballot mixed member proportional system. The purpose of this paper is to critically evaluate how electoral laws have anchored electoral system reforms throughout the various historical epochs in Lesotho since independence. The paper contends that while the country has been courageous, unlike most of its peers, to introduce far-reaching electoral system changes, the reform of electoral laws has not been so helpful in attaining the higher objectives of political inclusivity, constitutionalism and stability in Lesotho.

Electoral Systems and Ethnic Minority Representation

2017 ◽  
pp. 158-174
Author(s):  
David Lublin ◽  
Shaun Bowler
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minority ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Political Power ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Democratic Process ◽  
Minority Representation ◽  
Ethnic Geography

Every democratic process short of unanimity produces opinion minorities. Political divisions along anchored demographic characteristics like language, religion, race, or ethnicity challenge pluralist models of governance by threatening to entrench the exclusion of minority groups from political power. Especially when attuned to ethnic geography, electoral engineering through manipulation of the electoral system and other rules governing the electoral process, such as boundary delimitation, reserved seats, ballot-access requirements, and ethnic party bans, can help promote either inclusion or exclusion of minorities. Ensuring long-term interethnic peace has proved more difficult. Scholars continue to grapple with how to ensure minority inclusion without freezing existing divisions.

Special elections in alternative vote electoral systems: Exploring turnout and the vote in Irish by-elections 1923–2019

2021 ◽  
pp. 136914812110457
Author(s):  
Stephen Quinlan
Keyword(s):  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Economic Conditions ◽  
Government Performance ◽  
Multifaceted Approach ◽  
Decisive Effect ◽  
Members Of Parliament ◽  
Alternative Vote ◽  
National Economic ◽  
The Impact

Most literature on special elections has focused on first-past-the-post contests and on the performance of governments. Turnout, candidates, and how the electoral system impacts the result have received less attention. This contribution fills these voids by exploring special elections in Ireland, elections conducted under the alternative vote system. Taking a multifaceted approach, it investigates the correlates of turnout, the impact of candidates and the decisive effect of lower preferences, while also testing multiple explanations of government performance. I find Irish special elections live up to the by-election truisms of lower turnout and government loss. Government performance is associated with national economic conditions. By-election victory is more likely among candidates with familial lineage and former members of parliament. Where they come into play, one in five candidates owe their victory to lower preferences.

Wahlsystemreform in Deutschland

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peggy Matauschek
Keyword(s):  
Party System ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Parallel Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Proportional Representation ◽  
Electoral Reform ◽  
Suitable Alternative ◽  
Representation Systems ◽  
District Magnitude ◽  
Alternative Vote

Is plurality or majority electoral reform a sensible option in Germany’s muddled electoral system debate? Yes, it is. Since Germany’s mixed-member proportional system fails to concentrate the party system in a sufficient way, Peggy Matauschek searches for a suitable alternative to the principle of proportional representation. She discusses the following options according to their contextual conditions: single-member plurality and majority electoral systems—like the alternative vote system—, parallel systems, proportional representation systems with a low district magnitude and majority bonus systems. In light of its balanced performance, the study advocates the introduction of a system with a majority bonus for a coalition.

Dispositive Model of Active Legal Capacity of People with Mental Disabilities in France and Quebec in the Context of the Russian Civil Code Reform (Part II)

2021 ◽  
pp. 80-87
Author(s):  
Terdi E. S. ◽  
◽  
Skrynnik I. K. ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Disorder ◽  
Legal Protection ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Civil Code ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Legal Capacity ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Legal Norms ◽  
Leading Role ◽  
Legal Method

The article is devoted to the problem of the inconsistency of the Russian imperative model of active legal capacity, according to which the content of active legal capacity in case of its restriction due to mental disability of a person is prescribed by the law, to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ratified by Russia in 2012. The purpose of the paper is to demonstrate the shortcomings of the imperative model, the main of which is the lack of authority of the Russian court to individually determine the consequences of restriction of active legal capacity of a person due to mental disorder, taking in account degree of actual decrease of his cognitive and volitional abilities. This purpose is achieved by the consistent implementation of the following tasks. First of all, characteristic of the Russian imperative model of active legal capacity is given. Secondly, the French dispositive model of legal capacity is described. In this model the forms of legal protection, but not the categories of active legal capacity, incapacitation and restricted active legal capacity are the backbone concepts for the legal regulation of this group of relationship. It is noted that under the influence of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities the more progressive, from the point of view of international law, forms of this model are stipulated in many foreign countries. Thirdly, the evolved form of the French dispositive model of active legal capacity, implemented in the Bill 18 «An Act to amend the Civil Code, the Code of Civil Procedure, the Public Curator Act and various provisions as regards the protection of persons», that was adopted by the National Assembly of Quebec in 2 June 2020, is analyzed. The main advantage of the latter is that the court, establishing the form of protection, is not bound by the legal norms that imperatively determine the content of active legal capacity of a person with mental disorder. The court is able, based on the cognitive and volitional abilities of particular person, to individually determine which acts person can perform by himself, alone or with the assistance of the tutor, and which one can be performed by the tutor only. The objectives of the study determine the leading role of the comparative legal method in its implementation. The provided research makes possible to assess the perspectives of borrowing of French or Quebec dispositive models of active legal capacity of people with mental disorder by the Russian legislator.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document