| A | B |
|---|
| constitutional monarch | a democratic government with a monarch (king/queen) as head of state and a parliament or other legislature that makes the laws |
| democracy | a government elected by the people for the people |
| constitution | a legal document which outlines and limits the power of those elected to govern us |
| federalism | when the power of a country is divided between national and regional governments |
| direct democracy | a system where all citizens vote directly on all issues |
| representative democracy | citizens elect representatives to vote on their behalf |
| multi-party system | a political system in which several major political parties and many lesser parties exist. This system provides the people with a wide range of choices during election time. |
| republic | a form of government whose head of state is not a monarch |
| P.O.G.G. | Peace, Order and Good Government; the principles on which Canada's gov't was founded |
| executive branch | consists of the P.M. and the cabinet; carries out the laws and the daily business of the gov't |
| legislative branch | consists of the House of Commons, Senate and the Governor General; makes and passes laws |
| prime minister | member of the executive and legislative branches; he is the leader of the party with the most seats in the House of Commons |
| governor general | Canada's official head of state; represents the monarch in Canada |
| cabinet | part of the executive and legislative branches; a carefully chosen group of elected M.P.s selected by the P.M. to run important gov't departments |
| civil servants | part of the executive branch; Canadian citizens who work for the government departments and agencies |
| parliament | a body (elected or appointed) with the power to make laws; in Canada this is the H.O.C. and the Senate |
| judicial branch | includes Canada's courts of law; in charge of interpreting the law and making legal judgements |
| diplomat | someone who engages in international negotiations and who represents his/her country abroad |
| municipal government | responsible for issues such as garbage disposal, parks, road repairs and by-laws |
| provincial government | responsible for administering healthcare, public education and highways |
| federal government | responsible for national defense, income tax and GST and criminal law |
| constituency | also called a riding; a geographic area that an MP is elected to represent |
| constituent | someone who lives in a riding and is represented by an elected official from that riding |
| bill | new legislation or changes to an existing law that is being proposed to Parliament. Must be passed by both the H.O.C. and Senate before it can become an official law |
| royal assent | the Governor General must give her approval to any bill in order for it to become a law |
| Member of Parliament (MP) | elected member of Canada's House of Commons |
| riding | also called a constituency or an electoral district; a geographical area which is one seat in the House of Commons |
| senator | appointed member of Canada's upper house: the Senate |
| social policies | government policies having to do with human society and its organization (healthcare, welfare, abortion, capitol punishment) |
| fiscal policies | government policies having to do with financial matters |
| reform | change |
| affiliation | to associate with something / someone |
| conservative | located on the far right of the economic spectrum; tradition provides society with stability and security; resistant to change |
| liberal | located in the centre of the political spectrum; political and social views favoring reform and progress at a cautious pace |
| socialism | located on the far left of the political spectrum; a political and economic system in which the gov't owns all industry and resources; change is encouraged |
| political spectrum | a chart used to define a person's political affiliation |
| majority government | this is formed if a political party wins 51% of the seats in the House of Commons; this party would always form the government |
| minority government | this is formed if a political party wins the most seats in the House of Commons, but not the majority of seats. To stay in power this party would need to negotiate for the support of at least one other party in the H.O.C.. |
| popular vote | the total support political parties win during an election, regardless of whether they win ridings. |
| first-past-the-post | an electoral system where the candidate who gets more votes than any other candidate in the electoral district wins; it is not necessary to obtain an absolute majority of the votes to be elected |
| party platform | a list of principles which a political party supports in order to appeal to the general public for the purpose of having that party's candidates voted into office |
| Single Member Plurality System | another name for a first-past-the-post electoral system |
| Sponsorship Scandal | controversy surrounding Liberal Party spending in the late-90s which led to the eventual downfall of the Liberal majority gov't |
| Federal Accountability Act | legislation passed in 2006 in response to the Sponsorship Scandal. Designed to make gov't more accountable to Canadians. |
| accountable | answerable to someone for your actions; transparent |
| bias | an opinion based on unchallenged assumptions |
| media | Includes newspapers, magazines, film, radio, television, the Internet, books and billboards |
| Supreme Court of Canada | Canada's highest court which is located in Ottawa. |
