In a parliamentary system, citizens elect Members of Parliament to represent their interests in legislatures. Many nations around the world use parliamentary systems. Each has a different form of government that shapes how they run.
Some parliamentary systems use proportional means for allocating seats in electoral assemblies, while others use plurality methods. The resulting differences in ballot structures and in how seats are allocated can dramatically alter election outcomes.
A key issue in parliamentary systems is the ability of the ruling party to control the legislative agenda. This problem can be mitigated by setting fixed election periods or by allowing voters to choose between more than one political party.
Parliamentary systems vary in the extent to which they allow for lawmaking through consensus or adversarial debate and in how important committees are to their functioning. They also differ in how they organize the legislature, with some having a Westminster model where the plenary chamber takes precedence over committees and some using more of a consensual, Western European style where the focus is on open party lists and multimember constituencies.
In most parliamentary systems, the leader of the political party with the majority in parliament selects department ministers to form a government that manages the affairs of the country. Some parliamentary systems have ceremonial heads of state, such as hereditary monarchs in England, Canada and India or elected presidents or chancellors in Germany. The legislative, executive and judicial functions of parliaments are generally separate in most parliamentary systems.
About the Author
