Citizen U Presents:

Comparing Power—
An Appraisal of Comparative Government and Politics
AP Comparative and Politics Curriculum
Fall, 2024

Big Ideas in AP Comparative Government and Politics*

1. POWER AND AUTHORITY (PAU)*
2. LEGITIMACY AND STABILTY (LEG)*
3. DEMOCRATIZATION (DEM)*
4. INTERNAL/EXTERNAL FORCES (IEF)*
5. METHODS of POLITICAL ANALYSIS (MPA)*

Unit 4: Party and Electoral Systems and Citizen Organizations *

DEM— The rules of electoral systems reflect party and legislative control and level of democratization.*

4.1 Describe electoral systems and election rules among course countries.*

In some regimes, electoral rules and systems are structured to allow for the competitive selection of representatives, while in
other regimes rules are frequently changed to advance different political interests. *

• The National People’s Congress of China selects members indirectly through a series of local and regional elections. *

- While China’s constitution indicates that these lower level elections allow citizens to shape the upper tiers
of China’s Communist Party, the reality of politics in China is that the CCP leadership plays a significant role
in the selection of candidates for these elections. The CCP allows eight other parties to operate in China, but
this creates a façade of a multiparty system. China’s constitution states that this supposed multiparty system
will be led by China’s Communist Party. No party, other than the CCP, is allowed governing power.

• Iran’s Majles members are directly elected in single-member and multimember districts, which sometimes requires a
second round of voting; candidates are vetted by the Guardian Council, and the legislative body lacks formal political
party structures; a small number of the 290 seats in the Majles are reserved for non-Muslim minorities, such as Christians,
Jews, and Zoroastrians. *

- Iran reserves seats in the legislature for these religious minorities as these groups are viewed as
monotheistic religions within Shi’a Islam. Baha’is are not granted a seat in the legislature because members
of this group are persecuted as apostates to Islam by Iran’s government.

• Mexico’s Congress of the Union has two chambers: the Chamber of Deputies, which has 300 members directly elected in
single-member districts by plurality and an additional 200 members elected by a proportional representation, party-list
system conducted in five districts of 40 members each; and the Chamber of Senators, which has 96 members elected in
three-seat constituencies that guarantee two senators for the winning party and 1 senator for the 2nd place party and 32 by
proportional representation conducted at the national level; gender quotas in the party list system have helped increase
female representation in the legislature. *

- Even when PRI was the dominant party in Mexico until 2000, the proportional representation system that is
part of Mexico’s legislative elections guaranteed that minor parties would win some seats in the legislature.
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 This gave Mexico the appearance of being a competitive democracy even when PRI dominated the other
electoral contests including for president.

Gender quotas are requirements that a certain percentage of candidates in single member district elections or
representatives placed in seats in proportional representation systems be women in an effort to promote the
ideal of gender equity.

In Mexico, political parties began promising to run at least 30% women as candidates in 2003. This quota
was increased to 40% in 2009 but parties fell well below this goal until the IFE mandated the quota rules and
Mexico’s courts supported this mandate. In 2014, the constitution was amended to require the 30% gender
quotas for national and local elections. After the 2018 legislative elections, women held nearly 50% of the
seats in both chambers of the Congress. In 2021, women won a record 7 of the 32 regional governor
positions. In 2019, women’s rights activists in Mexico led a grassroots campaign to have their constitution
amended to move toward gender parity in all three branches of government with the hashtag campaign of
#ParidadEnTodo (parity in everything.) And in 2024, Claudia Sheinbaum was elected with 61% of the
national vote and became Mexico’s first female president.

• Members of the Nigerian House of Representatives are directly elected in single-member districts with representatives
from each of Nigeria’s states; the number of representatives elected from each state is based on population size, whereas
the Senate has three members directly elected from three districts in each of Nigeria’s 36 states; two major parties have
alternated control of the National Assembly. *

- Similar to Mexico’s electoral system, Nigeria’s system of single-member districts allows the representation
from all of Nigeria’s diverse regions to the national legislature.

• Changes to state Duma elections in Russia have returned it to a system in which half of the 450 representatives are
directly elected from single-member districts and the other half are chosen through elections that use proportional
representation with a threshold. *

- After the election system was changed to accelerate the move of United Russia as the country’s dominant
party, Russia’s electoral system is now similar to Mexico’s electoral system for its national legislature.
Russia’s mix of single-member district and proportional representation allows the representation from all of
Russia’s diverse regions along with a guarantee that multiple parties will have representatives elected to the
national legislature. This gives Russia the appearance of being a competitive democracy even when United
Russia dominates electoral contests including for president.

• The United Kingdom’s House of Commons 650 members are directly elected under single-member district, first-past-
the-post rules. *

- While governing power in the legislature alternates between two major parties, the UK’s single member
district system allows the representation from members of other parties in the UK’s different regions.

Proportional representation relies on multimember districts that promote multiparty systems.*

In proportional representation election systems, parties appoint legislative members proportional to the election results.
This system promotes multiple parties being represented in the legislative branch and is sometimes called party list
elections. Some proportional systems feature multimember districts. With the appointment of representatives by party
leaders, proportional representation systems can help increase the number of women and minority community
representatives to apportioned legislative seats.

*Sourced from the AP Comparative Government and Politics course description (2019.)

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DEM— The rules of electoral systems reflect party and legislative control and level of democratization.*

4.2 Explain how election rules serve different regime objectives regarding ballot access, election wins,
and constituency accountability.*

Proportional representation can result in an increase in the number of political parties represented in national legislatures, as
well as an increase in the election of minority and women candidates. *

In proportional representation election systems, parties appoint legislative members proportional to the election results.
This system promotes multiple parties being represented in the legislative branch and is sometimes called party list
elections. Some proportional systems feature multimember districts. With the appointment of representatives by party
leaders, proportional representation systems can help increase the number of women and minority community
representatives to apportioned legislative seats.

Hypothetical proportional election system for a legislative chamber of 200 seats

Political Parties Votes Earned Result
Left Party 20% 40 seats won
Center Party 60% 120 seats won
Right Party 20% 40 seats won

Single-member district plurality systems tend to promote two-party systems. They provide voters with strong constituency
service and accountability because there is a single representative per district, and they ensure geographic representation. *

In single-member district, plurality systems, one candidate with the most votes (not required to earn a majority of more
than 50%) in a district wins the sole representative seat.

Hypothetical single-member district, plurality system for a legislative seat

Candidates Votes Earned Result
Left Party Candidate 20% Loses
Center Party Candidate 60% Wins with plurality
(and with majority)
Right Party Candidate 20% Loses

Hypothetical single-member district, plurality system for a legislative seat

Candidates Votes Earned Result
Left Party Candidate 30% Loses
Center Party Candidate 40% Wins with plurality
(but no majority)
Right Party Candidate 30% Loses

Different presidential election systems have different rules for determining election winners; some systems employ second
round or runoff elections to obtain a majority vote, while others decide elections based on a plurality of most votes cast
among candidates in the race. *

In a second round, runoff election system, a candidate for a sole executive position or legislative positions must win a
majority of the vote (more than 50% of the vote.) In a multi-candidate race, the winning candidate must win a majority of
the vote either in the first round of balloting or in the second round of balloting that features the top two vote earners in the
first round.

• Presidential candidates in Nigeria must secure a plurality (most) of the national vote and win at least 25% of the vote in
2/3 of the states otherwise a 2nd round of elections occurs between the top two candidates. Every winning candidate has
secured victory in the first round of balloting. *

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 • Presidential candidates in Iran and Russia must win an absolute majority of the popular vote in either the first or second
round of national voting. If no candidate wins an absolute majority in the first round, the second round is conducted
between the top two vote earners in the first round. *

• Majoritarian rules in Iran and Russia provide the winners with a national mandate.*

In majoritarian rules elections, the winning candidate must win a majority of the vote (50% + at least 1 vote.)

Hypothetical second round, runoff election system with majoritarian rules

Candidates 1st Rd Votes Earned Result
Left Party Candidate 20% Loses
Center Party Candidate 60% Wins with majority
Right Party Candidate 20% Loses

Hypothetical second round, runoff election system with majoritarian rules

Candidates 1st Rd Votes Earned Result
Left Party Candidate 40% Runoff in 2nd Round
Center Party Candidate 35% Runoff in 2nd Round
Right Party Candidate 25% Loses

Hypothetical second round, runoff election system with majoritarian rules

Candidates 2nd Rd Votes Earned Result
Left Party Candidate 40% Loses
Center Party Candidate 60% Wins with majority

• Mexico’s president is elected by a plurality of the national popular vote, not an absolute majority. *

In an executive election plurality system, one candidate wins the election as the sole executive by winning the most
votes (not necessarily a majority of at least 50% of the vote.)

Hypothetical plurality winner system for an executive position

Candidates Votes Earned Result
Left Party Candidate 30% Loses
Center Party Candidate 40% Wins with plurality
(but no majority)
Right Party Candidate 30% Loses

Different political systems use electoral regulatory organizations to set various rules about ballot access and competition. *

• Guardian Council excludes reform-minded candidates or those who do not support Islamic values from the ballot, which
limits the number of candidates and reduces electoral competition and representation. *

• As part of their democratic transition, Mexico and Nigeria have created independent election commissions that attempt
to reduce voter fraud and manipulation and enhance electoral competition. *

- In Mexico, the Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) regulates elections.

- In Nigeria, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) regulates elections.

Both countries have seen dominant parties (PRI in Mexico-2000 and PDP in Nigeria-2015) lose governing
power to a rival party in both executive and legislative elections since 2000. Mexico has had three different
parties win national governing power since 2000. In 2023, Mexico’s President López Obrador supported the

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 national legislature’s move to reduce the INE’s budget and weaken its enforcement of election laws. This
legislation is seen as López Obrador’s attempt to reduce the independence and effectiveness of the INE after
the INE certified him as the losing candidate in the close 2006 presidential election. Obrador’s successor,
Claudia Sheinbaum, is also of the MORENA party coalition and won the 2024 presidential election with 61%
of the national vote.

Some regimes use an appointment system for membership in legislative bodies to promote a diversity of viewpoints, while
other regimes use it to advance the political agenda of governing elites. *

• Appointments for the United Kingdom’s House of Lords are approved by the monarch with recommendations made by
the prime minister and an independent commission. *

• Half of Iran’s Guardian Council members are selected by the supreme leader, and half are nominees from the judiciary
with Majles approval. *

• The appointment process for positions in Russia’s Federation Council is done by regional governors and the regional
legislature. The creation of nine federal districts (with the annexation of Crimea) has reasserted federal power under the
Russian president by allowing him to appoint presidential envoys to the districts, and allowing regional legislatures to
forgo elections and appoint a governor from a list of candidates approved by the president.*

- But Russia has allowed for the direct election of some governors since 2012. Most governors are now
directly elected with some governors indirectly elected by regional legislatures.

Election rule changes affect the representation of different religious, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups.*

In proportional representation election systems, multiple parties representing a wider variety of viewpoints can get elected
to legislative offices as compared with a single-member district system that often results in two major parties winning
most legislative elections. In proportional representation election systems, party leaders have more power to appoint
women and minority community representatives to apportioned legislative seats.

In single-member district systems, districts can be drawn to guarantee that citizens within different geographic areas gain
legislative representation as compared to proportional representation systems that do not ensure geographic representation.

The timing of legislative elections across the six countries can vary among systems based on term limit policies.*

- In China, National People’s Congress (NPC) members serve five-year terms and are indirectly elected
through a series of regional legislative assemblies.

- In Iran, Majles members are elected regularly on fixed terms of every four years separate from presidential
elections.

- In Mexico, members of the Chamber of Deputies are elected to fixed-terms of three years with a four-term
limit. Mexico’s Senators are elected to fixed-terms of six years and have a two-term limit of six years each.
Term limits for both of these offices were increased from a strict one-term limit in 2015.

- In Nigeria, members of the House of Representatives and the Senate are elected regularly on fixed terms of
every four years separate from presidential elections.

- In Russia, members of the Duma are elected regularly on fixed terms of every five years separate from
presidential elections. Prior to 2008, the term length for members of the Duma was four years.

-In the United Kingdom, Commons passed a law in 2011 that created a fixed-term election system in which
Commons elections would take place every five years on a fixed date. The UK’s first fixed-term election for
Commons took place in 2015. But the legislation allowed the prime minister to ask for snap elections to force
all members to campaign for re-election within 30 days with a supermajority of support. This legislation was
dissolved by a 2022 law allowing a prime minister to call a snap election (within 30 days) prior to the five-
year election deadline. PM Rishi Sunak called for the 2024 Commons elections to take place in July rather

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 than waiting until December of that year. Sunak’s Conservative Party lost the majority of seats to the Labour
Party in those elections.

*Sourced from the AP Comparative Government and Politics course description (2019.)

PAU— The power, influence, and strength of political parties and the degree of competition between parties reflect the values
of the regime or type of government.*

4.3 Describe characteristics of political party systems and party membership.*

Party systems and membership differ among course countries, ranging from dominant party systems to multiparty systems.*

- Elections in dominant party systems, like in Russia after 2000 and in Mexico prior to 2000, allow multiple
parties to run in elections, but one major party inevitably wins governing power.

- Russia is considered to be a dominant party system led by Putin’s United Russia party since 2001. Three
other parties consistently win sizable numbers of legislative seats but are always in the minority without
governing power as United Russia’s majority party status is unchallenged. United Russia’s presidential
candidate (Putin – 2004, 2012, 2018; Medvedev- 2008) has always won election with a majority of the vote
in Round 1, and United Russia holds an unwavering majority control of the seats in the Duma.

- Elections in multi-party system feature more than two parties that can compete for governing power. PRI
had led a dominant party system in Mexico for 70 years until other parties were able to win presidential
elections and majority control of the legislature in the 21st century when a multi-party system emerged in
Mexico.

China has rules that allow only one party, the Communist Party of China, to control governing power to maintain the values of
centralism and order, while allowing eight other parties to exist to broaden discussion and consultation. *

- The PRC’s constitution does guarantee a one-party system with the CCP as the sole holder of political
powers. The constitution includes a mandate that, “The leadership of the Communist Party of China is the
defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics.” China’s government allows eight other political
parties to exist and hold a relatively few seats in the NPC to give an image of broader political discussions
and consultation in China. But the constitution is clear that the CCP is superior with the statement that, “The
system of the multi-party cooperation and political consultation led by the Communist Party of China will
exist and develop for a long time to come.”

Rules ensuring one-party dominance in Russia include increasing party registration requirements, allowing only legally
registered parties to run for office, using selective court decisions to disqualify candidates, limiting the ability of political
opposition to present their viewpoints in the media, increasing threshold rules to limit party access to the ballot, and
eliminating gubernatorial elections. *

Rules that facilitate Mexico’s transition away from one-party dominance include eliminating el dedazo, privatizing state-owned
corporations to decrease patronage, decentralizing and reducing one-party power at the subnational level, and establishing and
strengthening the National Electoral Institute (IFE). *

- El dedazo translates as “the point” and was a metaphor used in Mexico to describe the nomination process
of a new PRI candidate (who would become the expected presidential winner during PRI dominance until
2000) by the outgoing PRI president. As PRI presidents stopped personally choosing the next PRI
presidential nominee, other parties, like PAN and MORENA, had more success in competing to win
presidential elections. This helped Mexico transition from dominant party system to a competitive multiparty
system. The mixed election system in both of Mexico’s legislative chambers feature direct elections and
proportional (party list) elections. This allows for a multi-party system in Mexico. Three different parties

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 (PAN, PRI and MORENA) have won majority control of both chambers of the Congress since 2000 under
this hybrid election system indicating an increase of electoral democratization in Mexico.

- Patronage is also known as patron-client relationship or clientelism. Patronage allows government officials
to distribute government jobs and services in return for voter loyalty. Patronage institutionalizes a quid pro
quo (“this for that”) relationship between elected officials and voters is often viewed as examples of
corruption by those not benefitting from the patronage relationship. As PRI’s influence in distributing
patronage to loyal voters was reduced, nominee, other parties, like PAN and MORENA, had more success in
competing to win elections. This helped Mexico transition from dominant party system to a competitive
multiparty system.

The degree of competition within multiparty systems can influence representation and formal political participation by
citizens.*

• Nigeria’s multiparty system includes 30 registered political parties, with two strong parties, the People’s Democratic
Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress of Nigeria (APC), and a third party having a degree of electoral success. *

- Two major parties have alternated control of the National Assembly. In 2015, Muhammadu Buhari of the
All Progressives Congress of Nigeria (APC) became the first president elected who was not from the
People’s Democratic Party (PDP). Tinubu from the APC won Nigeria’s presidential election in 2023. Tinubu
won with 36.6% of the vote compared to 29% for the PDP’s candidate and 25% for the Labour Party (LP)
candidate. Similar to Mexico’s electoral system, Nigeria’s system of single-member districts allows the
representation from all of Nigeria’s diverse regions to the national legislature. Nigeria is now considered to
be primarily a two-party system. While Nigeria has 30 registered political parties, two strong parties, the
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress of Nigeria (APC) have won presidential
elections and majority control of the National Assembly’s two chambers. Prior to Buhari’s (APC)
presidential win in 2015, the PDP had been considered to be Nigeria’s dominant political party.

• The United Kingdom’s party system features competition primarily between two major parties, the Conservative and
Labour parties, which control the legislature and executive (with first-past-the-post election rules favoring the major
parties). But minor parties with regional representation are also able to win some legislative representation. *

- The UK’s party system is usually classified as a two-party system or as a two-party plus. Only the
Conservative Party and the Labour Party have controlled a majority of Commons for the last 70 years as
other smaller alternative parties (Liberal Democrats) and regional parties (Scottish National Party) have
consistently won only relatively small shares of Commons seats. Political scientists often attribute this two-
party system to being a result of the UK’s plurality winner-takes-all election rules (First Past the Post) for its
Commons elections. In the last 30 years, majority governing power in the House of Commons has alternated
between the two major parties three times when the Labour Party gained majority control of Commons in
1997 then when the Conservative Party gained majority control of Commons in 2010 then when the Labour
Party regained majority control of Commons after the 2024 elections.

- In the 2015 election for seats in the House of Commons, the Scottish National Party (SNP) won 56 seats
and became the most electorally successful regional party in Commons elections. In the 2024 Commons
elections, the SNP won only 9 seats.

Catch-all political parties can earn support from groups with different characteristics, attracting popular support with
ideologically diverse platforms. *

- Catch-all political parties, like Russia’s United Russia, are often the dominant party in a dominant party
system that earns wide support from different and tends to support popular, pragmatic policies rather than
ideological policies that face significant opposition.

Some legislatures, such as the United Kingdom’s House of Commons, are highly organized by political parties, with voting
based on strict party discipline that influences policy-making.*

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 - In the United Kingdom, free votes on approving the 2013 legalization of same-sex marriage and on Brexit
alternative policies in 2019 represented rare votes in which party members were allowed to vote against the
preferences of party leadership without penalties by the party.

Because the Guardian Council blocks candidates who are less supportive of the theocracy from running for office, Iran does
not have a formal system of parties. Iran’s party system is more accurately described as set of changing allegiances to different
political figures whom the Guardian Council approves to run for elected office.

*Sourced from the AP Comparative Government and Politics course description (2019.)

PAU— The power, influence, and strength of political parties and the degree of competition between parties reflect the values
of the regime or type of government.*

4.4 Explain how political party systems and memberships link citizen participation to policy-making.*

Party systems vary across the course countries in terms of rules governing elections, party structure, and laws regulating
political parties, as represented by—

• In China, one party (Communist Party of China) has controlled the government (and military) since 1949, while minor
parties have limited power to fill minor political offices. *

• Iran lacks formal political party structures; parties operate as loosely formed political alliances with questionable linkage
to constituents. *

• In Mexico, the major parties in this multiparty system are the National Action Party (PAN), the Party of the Democratic
Revolution (PRD), Pres. López Obrador’s new MORENA party, and the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI.) PRI had
been the dominant party prior to democratization of elections; parties are allowed to form coalitions to nominate
candidates for any particular election.*

- MORENA (National Regeneration Movement) was formed as an official political party in 2014 by Andrés
Manuel López Obrador as a political alliance of PRD and other parties on the ideological left. In 2018 (López
Obrador) and 2024 (Sheinbaum) won the presidential elections as MORENA candidates, and MORENA
party candidates won a majority of seats in the Chamber of Deputies and plurality of seats in the Senate those
years.

• In Nigeria, multiple parties with ethnic quotas affect representation in the country’s federal legislature. *

• In Russia, one party has been dominating recent elections; diminished representation of smaller parties occurs because of
changing threshold rules; the elimination and then reinstatement of single member districts has affected regional parties
and the representation of independent candidates. *

• In the United Kingdom, two large parties (Labour and Conservative) dominate the House of Commons. *

• In the United Kingdom, single member district plurality elections diminish minor party representation. *

- The diminishing of minor party representation in the UK’s single-member district system can best be seen
in the national vote results of the Liberal Democrat Party that are historically larger than the percent of seats
that the Liberal Democrats win in Commons elections.

Liberal Democrat Election Results 1992-2024

YEAR NATIONAL COMMON
VOTE SEATS

1997 16.8% 46 (7.1%)

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 2001 18.3% 52 (8%)

2005 22% 62 (9.5%)

2010 23% 57 (8.8%)

2015 7.9% 8 (1.2%)

2017 7.4% 12 (1.8%)

2019 11.6% 11 (1.7%)

2024 12.2% 72 (11%)

• In the United Kingdom, single member districts (SMDs) allow regional parties to win legislative seats. *

- In the 2015 election for seats in the House of Commons, the Scottish National Party (SNP) won 56 seats
and became the most electorally successful regional party in Commons elections. In subsequent Commons
elections, the SNP won 35 seats (2017), 48 seats (2019), and 9 seats (2024) out of the 650 seats in the
chamber.

Party systems across the course countries vary in how they affect and are affected by citizen participation.*

*Sourced from the AP Comparative Government and Politics course description (2019.)

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IEF- Strong and varied citizen organizations and movements foster and are reinforced by democratization.*

4.5 Explain how social movements and interest groups affect social and political change.*

Social movements involve large groups of people pushing collectively for significant political or social change. *

Interest groups are explicitly organized to represent and advocate for a specific interest or policy issue, while social
movements represent multiple groups and individuals advocating for broad social change. *

Social movements across course countries have put pressure on the state to promote indigenous civil rights, redistribute
revenues from key exports such as oil, conduct fair and transparent elections, and ensure fair treatment of citizens of different
sexual orientations, including—*

• The Green Movement in Iran that protested corruption in the 2009 election. * The mass protests “Green Revolution”
against electoral fraud in Iran (2009) resulted in sweeping oppression by Iran’s government toward protestors and rival
political leaders. The government also increased its monitoring of the Internet as a way to quash political dissent.

In the Fall of 2022 and into 2023, hundreds of thousands joined different protests in cities across Iran against government
mandates for women to wear hijabs after a young woman (Mahsa Amini) was detained for violating Iran’s hijab mandate
and died in the law enforcement custody. Thousands of protestors were arrested and detained with hundreds of protestors
killed by government forces. By January of 2023, nearly 60 Iranian protestors had been put on trial and sentenced to
death after convictions.

• Zapatistas or Chiapas uprising in Mexico in response to socioeconomic inequality and the negative impact of the North
American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). * The Zapatista uprising of 1994 in the southern state of Chiapas highlighted
accusations that Mexico’s government had neglected these less affluent rural areas as northern Mexico benefitted from
economic development as symbolized by the government’s implementation of NAFTA.

• In Mexico, the International Women’s Day commemorated in March each year has become an annual event of massive
grassroots activism and protest by women’s rights advocates in Mexico. A major appeal by protestors is for the national
and local governments to be more active in investigating and prosecuting femicide and the disappearance of women
during the upsurge in violence related to organized criminal groups since 2006. In 2019, women’s rights activists in
Mexico led a grassroots campaign to have their constitution amended to move toward gender parity in all three branches
of government with the hashtag campaign of #ParidadEnTodo (parity in everything.) In 2024, presidential candidate
Cladia Sheinbaum won 61% of the national vote becoming Mexico’s first female president.

• Movements in Nigeria (often militant), including the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) and
the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), which have emerged to advocate for the rights of an
ethnic minority or protest against unjust methods of extraction and distribution of oil in the Niger Delta region. *

• The Boko Haram movement attempting to establish an Islamic State in northern Nigeria.* Boko Haram and Islamist
separatist groups have killed tens of thousands of Nigerians since 2009. Boko Haram’s intent was to create an Islamic
theocracy in northern Nigeria and used acts of terrorism to try to accomplish this goal. While Nigeria’s national military
and President Buhari claimed that Boko Haram had been defeated in 2015, the group is still linked to violent terrorist acts
that continue in Nigeria—especially in the northeast region.

• Nigeria’s #EndSARS social movement that started in 2020 and was led by young activists against the abusive tactics by
Nigeria’s Special Anti-Robbery Squads that have been often accused of abusive actions and corrupt practices. In 2020,
President Buhari announced the dismantling of the special police teams that had been created in 1992 to lower acts of
street crime but several organizers of the protests were accused of financial terrorism and had their bank accounts frozen
by Nigeria’s government. And more than 100 people were killed by security group attacks on protestors in Lagos.

• In Russia, domestic protests over Russian state Duma’s passage of legislation against same-sex couples. * There were
extensive protests against perceived corruption of legislative and presidential elections in 2011 and 2012 and regarding
the 2020 referendum on constitutional changes that allowed for the extension of Putin’s leadership. In the summer of
2020, there were major protests against Putin’s rule in Khabarovsk (a region in Siberia) due to the arrest of the region’s
governor (Sergei Furgal). Furgal—of the opposition Liberal Democratic Party— was democratically elected as the

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 region’s governor in 2018, but the region was the least supportive of the 2020 referendum on constitutional changes that
allowed for the extension of Putin’s leadership. Furgal was arrested due to his suspected connection with several
businessmen who were murdered in 2004 and 2005.

In 2022, the government imposed quick and strong restrictions against anti-war groups in Russia after Russia’s military
invasion of Ukraine. In 2023, opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza was sentenced to 25 years in prison for treason
and denigrating Russia’s military for speeches he made supporting international economic sanctions against Russia and
for criticizing Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine.

Grassroots social movements exert their power up from the local level to the regional, national, or international level. *

With limited organizational hierarchies, such movements are difficult for state-run military or law enforcement to suppress, but
some social movements also have difficulty in attracting and mobilizing support among fellow citizens or negotiating with
governmental representatives.*

*Sourced from the AP Comparative Government and Politics course description (2019.)
IEF- Strong and varied citizen organizations and movements foster and are reinforced by democratization.*

4.6 Describe pluralist and corporatist interest group systems..*

Pluralism and corporatism are systems of interest group representation. Pluralist systems promote competition among
autonomous groups not linked to the state, whereas in a corporatist system the government controls access to policymaking by
relying on state-sanctioned groups or single peak associations (SPAs) to represent labor, business, and agricultural sectors.
The state retains more control over citizen input in a corporatist system than it does in a pluralist system. *
Interest group systems can change over time, as represented by Mexico’s moving from a corporatist system toward a pluralist
system.*

- Mexico had a more authoritarian corporatist system of interest groups in which the government created
organizations in which citizens could participate. Mexico has transitioned to a pluralist system in which
citizens can affiliate with more independent interest group to attempt to shape public policies in national and
local government.

- Some political scientists classify China as a corporatist system because the government and China’s
Communist Party sponsors groups to draw citizen participation. This creates the image that these groups link
citizens to the shaping of government policies. But the reality is that this form of corporatism limits
participation by citizens and any uncertainties about policy advocacy that can come with a more pluralist
interest group system.

*Sourced from the AP Comparative Government and Politics course description (2019.)

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 AP CompGov: Glossary
Unit 4: Party and Electoral Systems and Citizen Organizations
Proportional representation - election system in which Two-party system – when elections feature two major
the party appoints legislative members proportional to the parties competing for governing power.
election results. This system promotes multiple parties
being represented in the legislative branch and is Dominant party system – when elections allow multiple
sometimes called party list elections and often features parties to run in elections, but one major party inevitably
multimember districts. With the appointment of wins governing power.
representatives by party leaders, proportional
representation systems can help increase the number of One party system – when only one party is allowed to
women and minority community representatives.* control governing power even if other parties exist.

Gender quotas – requirements that a certain percentage of Catch-all political parties – often the dominant party in a
candidates or representatives placed in seats in dominant party system that earns support from groups with
proportional representation systems be women in an effort different characteristics, attracting popular support with
to promote the ideal of gender equity as seen in Mexico. ideologically diverse platforms*

Single-member district, plurality system - election El dedazo- translates as “the point;” metaphor from
system in which one candidate with the most votes (not Mexico describing the nomination process of a new PRI
necessarily a majority of 50% + at least 1 vote) in a district candidate (who would become the expected presidential
wins the sole representative seat. Tends to promote two- winner during PRI dominance until 2000) by the outgoing
party systems. These provide voters with strong PRI president
constituency service and accountability because there is a
single representative per district. This type of system Patronage- also known as patron-client relationship or
ensures geographic representation.* clientelism; this allowed government officials to distribute
government jobs and services in return for voter loyalty;
Hybrid (mixed) election system – the use of a institutionalizes a quid pro quo (“this for that”)
combination of single-member district and proportional relationship between elected officials and voters is often
(party list) elections for legislative elections. Mexico and viewed as examples of corruption by those not benefitting
Russia use this type of election system for their lower from the patronage relationship
chambers. And Mexico also uses this mixed/hybrid system
for its senate elections. The single member district Social movements - involve large groups of people
elections guarantee representation for different regions. pushing collectively for significant political or social
The proportional elections allow for multiple parties to be change such as indigenous civil rights, redistribute
represented in the legislatures. Scotland’s regional revenues to different classes, conduct fair and transparent
parliament uses a similar type of system called an elections, and ensure fair treatment of citizens of different
Additional Member System. sexual orientations.*

Executive election plurality system - election system in Interest groups – groups organized to represent and
which one candidate wins the election as the sole executive advocate for a specific interest or policy issue.
by winning the most votes (not necessarily a majority of
50% + at least 1 vote.) Grassroots social movements - exert their power up from
the local level to the regional, national, or international
Second round, runoff election system - election system level*
in which a candidate for a sole executive position or
legislative positions must win a majority of the vote (50% Single peak associations (SPAs) – a type of interest group
+ at least 1 vote.) In a multi-candidate race, the winning that commonly represents professional or commercial
candidate must win a majority of the vote either in the first groups and helps establish standards for that profession or
round of balloting or in the second round of balloting that industry.
features the top two vote earners in the first round.
Political access – ability to contact government officials to
Majoritarian rules – winning candidate must win a shape policies.
majority of the vote (50% + at least 1 vote.)
*Sourced from the AP Comparative Government and
Multi-party system – when elections feature more than Politics course description (2019.)
two parties competing for governing power.

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