POLS final assigment
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School
Queens University *
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Course
110
Subject
Political Science
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
9
Uploaded by MajorGalaxy12659
Part A:
Should the state be able to pursue interests that are separate from those of society if
the state believes it's best for the people? Based on your answer, what does this say about
legitimacy?
Governments act as legitimate authorities to improve society and the economy. They employ
their power to implement many such policies that they feel suitable for the evolving system,
but they may also disagree from the interests of the society. Canada is the second largest
country in land size; however, the nation has one of the world's lowest population densities
since the overall population is modest in comparison to the size of the land. Canada is known
to be the land of immigrants due to its low population density which creates multiple
opportunities for people from different nationalities to migrate and be a part of this
developing nation. Even though Canada has been an accepting nation, the citizens have come
to a disagreement with the country’s laws on immigrants as they themselves are facing
unemployment and low wages issues in their own country. Secondly, concerns about growing
inequality have grown in the years after the global financial crisis of 2007-09, and more
recently, with the COVID-19 epidemic. This increase was felt mainly by low-income earners
and younger people, while older people benefited from higher retirement income. The
government has decided to implement Monterey policies, although this may only favor the
wealthiest sectors of the economy. Government does act legitimately in order to benefit the
society as a whole, however there are certain instances when society is not in favor of the
government's objectives.
Immigration has been a huge advantage to the Canadian economy as larger skilled workers
have gotten the opportunities to work for multiple Canadian companies and grow the GDP of
country. Due to which the Canadian government strongly believes that for the success and
development of the country it is necessary to implement such policies that can bring many
more immigrants to improve the land to population ratio. The federal government does act
legitimate when they plan on bringing 1.5 million immigrants by 2025. As the government
sets out this goal the Canadian citizens have conflicting interests about the increasing
unemployment and low wages that they are facing in the country. From 1966 through 2022,
Canada's unemployment rate averaged 7.60%, hitting an all-time high of 13.70% in May of
2020. We do comprehend the issue that the Canadian citizens are feeling of being neglected
in their own country. However, the government has behaved legitimately in bringing
immigrants to their country, as it has boosted their economy and provided opportunity to
millions of immigrants.
The issue of inequality re-emerged as a central point of public policy discussions following
the 2007–09 global financial crisis, and interest has intensified with the uneven economic
impact of the COVID-19 pandemic across workers. To address the existing income
disparities, the government, such as the Bank of Canada, and many central banks think that
implementing monetary policies is the best method to address the problem. Monetary policies
will gain from low interest rates, which will lead to higher asset purchases, which may aid the
economy's recovery but will mostly benefit the wealthier segment of the economy. Due to
which the low-income workers are facing extreme issues as they need more liquid assets per
dollar spent than other households. Because their investments earn little to no nominal
interest, inflation eats away at their value. The government acts legitimately since low-
income earners account for just 9% of the total, whereas high-income earners account for
19%. The government may not be fair to every individual, but they must consider the bulk of
society and implement policies that will help the nation thrive economically.
Canadians are dealing with challenges relating to immigration laws that are increasing native
unemployment and monetary policies that may benefit the wealthy as well as the economy.
However, the government is operating legitimately and should continue to carry out such
measures in their interests since they have the potential to benefit the economy while also
affecting a big segment of society. If the authorities in power feel it is appropriate for the
people, then society's interests should not obstruct the growth process.
Word count: 600
Part B:
What three changes or additions would you make to the Canadian electoral system to
make it more effective and why? Ensure that your answer illustrates your understanding of
flaws in our system and what you mean by effective.
Since the earliest elections, the traditional Canadian voting process has been a part of life for
many Canadians as it gives them the opportunity to vote in public booths collectively.
However, moving into the generation of innovation and globalization, traditional voting
systems have become inaccessible for many today. Citizens with disabilities feel neglected in
today’s world as they are not able to physically contribute to the elections. Furthermore,
individuals who are not present in the nation are not in any manner accessible to contribute to
the voting system, which not only reduces participation percentages but also gives an
opportunity to opposition candidates whom society does not favour to win. As time passed,
the new generation's enthusiasm in voting has faded. The youth finds impossible to carve out
time from their busy lives to participate in emerging political activities. Traditional voting
methods lag behind because voting officials manually tally every vote at the end of election
day and conduct registration via enumeration rather than a permanent electoral register. These
approaches take substantially more time, and the voting mechanism becomes inefficient as a
result. Officers may be biased toward certain parties, resulting in rigged elections. We do get
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an idea of the current Canadian electoral system and how ineffective they may in today’s
world. The SVA’s need to come in with additional strategies and changes in the voting system
in order to face these issues.
To begin, there is a need for telephone voting, which has already been used in provinces such
as British Columbia in 2017 and has been tremendously effective in increasing participation
rates. It was created to provide disabled individuals the right to vote and contribute to society.
Telephone voting may be a significant advantage to the country's youths since it makes it
easier for them to participate in the voting system and saves them time from physically voting
in booths. Such methods need to be incorporated throughout Canada as it is an effective
method of voting and a step towards the development of the society.
Second, electronic pool book and ballot tabulating technologies should be introduced since
they may greatly benefit elections. As there is a possibility of human error and dishonesty in
the elections, such a system may aid voting officers by minimizing the time spent counting
ballots at the completion of the elections. Given the growing cost and diminishing popularity
of a system designed for conventional voting, these new technologies will ensure fair
elections while also saving money. Such systems should be employed across the nation since
they may tremendously benefit society by providing them with fair and timely results of their
elected members. It also enables the government to rigorously monitor the polls and get a
clear picture of the participation percentage and accurate election outcomes.
Third, as a crucial addition to the current online voting system, proper cyber security
processes may aid society in avoiding fraud and unfair results. Online voting techniques are
an effective
way to increase participation and provide all citizens with
opportunity to vote.
However, face recognition technology and self-authorization through legitimate picture
identity may be an effective strategy to prevent fraudulent votes. Such improvements to the
electoral system will provide the country with security and allow the authorities to validate
every voter present.
In short, it is critical for the government to adopt innovations such as telephone voting and
electronic phone booths across the nation. As these strategies may increase participation in
the electoral voting system and allow disabled citizens to participate in elections. In order to
avoid fraud and ensure fair members are chosen for the nation, cyber security regulations
must be included to the new online voting systems.
Word count: 600
Part C:
How might citizens’ assemblies respond to the lack of democratic participation? Are
there problems with them and what does its existence say about citizens and their engagement
with politics?
Democratic governments across the world believe that every citizen should have the right to
vote since it is up to the people to choose who will be their political leader. However, in
today's society, interest in politics has declined with time, showing that individuals are
reluctant to assert their rights. Citizens assemblies are organised in which small groups of
people are divided based on a demographic model and given the opportunity to perform in-
depth analysis of a certain issue. For a number of reasons, such assemblies have shown a lack
of involvement in the development of political elections, which has not only resulted in a
decrease in participation rates but also indicates a loss of political interest in all people.
Governments and society are facing issues because people are hesitant to protect their rights
and vote for a new leader. Aside from the problem of citizens' interests, individuals with
disabilities who want to participate to the electoral system are unable to do so since it is
difficult for them to follow traditional voting methods and physically access polling booths.
Furthermore, regardless of traditional voting systems, many are hesitant to put in the effort
and time necessary for elections, since the youth of today prefers digitalization over physical
voting. Covid-19 has also had a substantial impact on voting attendance, as people choose to
protect themselves from spreading infections by avoiding large crowds and following
government-mandated precautions.
Every citizen has a responsibility to vote since it is a crucial factor in selecting the right
leader for the governing body. Citizens, on the other hand, often show a lack of interest in
voting for their leader because they are disengaged with politics and believe it is a waste of
their time. The government believes in campaigning and reaching out to each individual via
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social media and rallies, yet this does not alter people's ideologies due to a lack of
interest. More than 32% of Canadians remain uninterested in the election system, believing
that each leader is the same and will not make a substantial change in their lives. For some,
politics is just a means to gain power, responsibility, and money via the public, which disrupts
the political environment and fosters a feeling of negligence towards voting. Due to the
increasing costs the number of votes tends to decrease. Costs such as whether to vote and for
whom to vote place people in a condition of uncertainty since they lack political knowledge
and prefer to avoid such costs. The government employs educational tactics to acquaint
citizens with the art of politics; nonetheless, they resist incorporating the right to vote and
demonstrate their lack of interest throughout.
Canada has not been able to digitalize its elections because they still feel that traditional
voting procedures are the best way to get individuals to vote. However, as the world has
progressed via digitalisation, people's attitudes regarding voting have shifted. In the 1960s,
the average voter turnout in Canada was 77%; however, as we approach the twenty-first
century, the average voter participation has dropped to 62%. Many individuals want to be a
part of the democratic system, but many feel neglected because of their disabilities, which is
why average voter participation has declined dramatically. Due to traditional voting methods
in polling booths, up to 11% of disabled people in Canada were unable to vote and hence
were unable to participate in the democratic system. Significantly, since the COVID 19
pandemic, citizens have been more cautious about attending social events in order to protect
themselves from the illnesses carried around them. As a result, voting participation fell by 2%
since people tend to follow governmental norms and want to remain isolated.
The government must expand on the notion of digitalizing the election process to allow for
online voting, since voter participation in Canada fell by 7%. Citizen assemblies have shown
an absence of interest in democratic participation because some lack understanding of politics
and perceive that politics is a means of bringing in leaders who desire power in order to
obtain monetary benefits. Traditional voting processes are ineffective in increasing the
number of voters because it is difficult for disabled people and young individuals who are
attempting to express their views. This lack of inclusion may be addressed by digitalizing the
election system.
Words: 700
Reference Citations:
1)
Part A: Levinson-King, R. (2022, November 22).
Canada: Why the country wants to
bring in 1.5m immigrants by 2025
. BBC News. Retrieved December 12, 2022, from
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-63643912
2)
Part A: Burkinshaw, S., Terajima, Y., & Wilkins, C. (2022, July 27).
Income
inequality in Canada
. Bank of Canada. Retrieved December 12, 2022, from
https://www.bankofcanada.ca/2022/07/staff-discussion-paper-2022-16/#:~:text=Data
%20show%20that%20income%20inequality,benefited%20from%20higher
%20retirement%20income.
3)
Part B:
Ann Dickie, S. R. O. published on P. O. S. 20. (2022, November 21).
Early
lessons on electoral participation and modernizing elections after the pandemic
.
Policy Options. Retrieved December 12, 2022, from
https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/septembe-2021/early-lessons-on-electoral-
participation-and-modernizing-elections-after-the-pandemic/
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