A parliamentary vote is a decision on an issue that affects the whole group. Everyone must have a fair opportunity to express their point of view, but the opinion of the majority is what determines the council’s decisions.
Parliamentary democracy
Most democracies today use the parliamentary system of government, which is based on having elected representatives in a legislative body that also sets law and holds the executive branch accountable to it. Parliamentary systems may be bicameral, with two chambers of parliament (or houses), or unicameral, with one.
Members of Parliament (MPs) are elected through an electoral process in which each person eligible to vote is allocated a constituency that they represent in parliament. If a member of parliament is not elected, a by-election is held to find someone new. The MPs then select a leader of their party, who becomes the prime minister and leads the ministry of departments that run the country.
To be able to govern, the prime minister and his or her cabinet must demonstrate that they have the support of a majority of the legislature. This is known as the ‘confidence of parliament’ and can be a check on the power of the executive. The head of state or monarch – in Great Britain and New Zealand – can withhold royal assent to laws passed by the parliament, but this rarely happens. This can be a form of check on the legislative power, but it is not as strong as a constitutional court’s power to review and overturn legislation.
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