ISOS Honors: What is democracy?
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brionnablodgett on December 10, 2010
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33 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Direct Democracy | A form of government in which citizens rule directly and not through representatives. |
| Republic | A political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them. |
| Representative Democracy | A system of government in which citizens elect representatives, or leaders, to make decisions about the laws for all the people. |
| Referendum | A legislative act is referred for final approval to a popular vote by the electorate |
| Recall | The act of removing an official by petition. |
| Federalism | A system in which power is divided between the national and state governments. |
| Federal | National. |
| Decentralized | Governmental power is spread among more than one person or group. |
| Centralized | A federal union in which the federal government will dominate. |
| Majority Rule | Governance according to the expressed preferences of the majority. |
| Majority Tyranny | Situation in which majority uses advantage in numbers to suppress rights of minority. |
| Supermajority | A majority greater than a simple majority of one over half, e.g., 3/5, 2/3. |
| Natural Right | Right that belongs to all humans from birth, such as life, liberty, and property. |
| Separation of Powers | The division of power among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government. |
| Checks and Balances | A system that allows each branch of government to limit the powers of the other branches in order to prevent abuse of power. |
| Executive Branch | The branch of the United States government that is responsible for carrying out the laws. |
| Legislative Branch | The branch of government that makes the laws. |
| Judicial Branch | The branch of government that interprets laws |
| Impeach | To charge with a crime or misdemeanor. |
| Plutocracy | A political system governed by the wealthy people. |
| Theocracy | A government run by religious leaders. |
| Oligarchy | A political system governed by a few people. |
| Autocracy | A political theory favoring unlimited authority by a single individual. |
| Tyranny | Dominance through threat of punishment and violence. |
| Atheist | Someone who denies the existence of god. |
| Monotheist | A believer in one god. |
| Polytheist | A person who believes in more than one god. |
| Monogamy | Having only one spouse at a time. |
| Polygamy | Having more than one spouse at a time. |
| Veto | A vote that blocks a decision. |
| Cabinet | Persons appointed by a head of state to head executive departments of government and act as official advisers. |
| Ambassador | A person sent to a foreign country to represent his or her government. |
| Civil Court | Court in which lawsuits are heard. In contrast, criminal cases are heard in criminal court. |
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