Comparative & International · World
Parliamentary vs Presidential Systems
How the Westminster model fuses executive and legislature (PM from parliament, confidence votes, snap elections) versus separated presidential systems, semi-presidential France, coalition building, and the trade-offs for stability and accountability.
Step 1 of 6 · Overview30 min read ·
Key idea
Prereqs: The US Constitution; separation of powers. Next: Democracies vs autocracies; China's political system. Sources: Arend Lijphart, *Patterns of Democracy* (2nd ed., 2012); Juan Linz, 'The Perils of Presidentialism' (1990); Walter Bagehot, *The English Constitution* (1867).Next: 1. Two designs