Party system
From Free net encyclopedia
A party system is a concept in political science concerning the system of government in a state where political parties exist.
The party system of a state determines how many political parties in a state have a realistic chance of becoming the government, usually through winning elections. Party systems are usually created by a variety of factors, such as the type of electoral system used in a state. For example, the use of First Past the Post in elections to a state's primary legislative assembly (for example general elections) usually results in a two-party system (this theory is called Duverger's law).
There are four distinct types:
- Single-party system – when only one party can be the government because all other parties are banned;
- Two-party system – when only two parties can realistically compete to become the government;
- Dominant-party system – when only one party can realistically compete to become the government because of the weakness of other parties;
- Multi-party system – when more than two parties can realistically compete to become the government.
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