The Netherlands is a parliamentary democracy with various political parties. Under the Political Parties (Grants) Act, national political parties can receive government grants to subsidise their activities.
Political parties in a parliamentary democracy
In a parliamentary democracy, citizens elect their representatives. In the Netherlands this happens every 4 years. The candidates are members of political parties. Citizens vote for the party of their choice and, in this way, influence government policy.
Role of political parties
A political party brings together people with the same political ideas. By taking part in an election, parties hope to get as many of their members as possible into a representative body, like parliament or a municipal council. At the same time they try to hold as many posts as possible in the government, or in the municipal or provincial executive.
Political parties have various functions. One is promoting the interests of their voters. They also draw up party programmes. Citizens can join political parties, enabling them to help shape the party programme.
Founding a political party
Under the terms of the Elections Act, anyone in the Netherlands can found a political party, even minors and foreign nationals. Political parties wishing to participate in an election can contact the Electoral Council for more information.
Grants for political parties
National political parties that have at least one seat in the House of Representatives or Senate are eligible for grants. These can be used for research, training or the recruitment of new members. With the help of these grants parties can reinforce their position as part of a parliamentary democracy.
The road to the White House is long, expensive, and exhausting. Becoming a candidate is only the beginning of the election process. Successful candidates must both persuade voters that they deserve their individual votes and garner the critical votes of electors in the Electoral College.
Persuading voters is the essence of a political campaign. Advertising, theme songs, stump speeches, and even negative campaigning have been around since our country began, and each advance in technology since then has offered new opportunities for candidates to persuade voters. Study the campaign poster of Millard Fillmore from 1850. Would the figures of Justice and Liberty wearing gowns and tiaras surrounding Millard Fillmore sway a modern voter? Probably not, but notice the American flags in both of these posters. We certainly see that imagery in advertisements for candidates running in current presidential elections.
Developments in photographic techniques sparked new campaign strategies. For example, in 1860, photographs of Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin were featured on campaign buttons. Campaigns still relied on tried and true ways to persuade voters, such as sheet music, and direct contact between voters and candidates. One voter sent these specific questions to Abraham Lincoln:
Sir,
1st-- Suppose you should be elected President of the United States and the South would not submit to your inauguration: What would you do? --
2nd -- Are you opposed to slavery as it now exists in the slave states, and if so, do you believe that Congress has more power to remove it from those states than to protect it in the Territories?
3rd -- Were you in favor of J[ohn] Brown the Traitor, or do you now occasionally drop a silent tear or two in honor to his memory?
I am a voter and I want to know exactly every inch of ground you stand upon -- I want to know for I want to vote for the right kind of a man -- If you suit me I'll go for you -- If not away with you!!From Thomas T. Swan to Abraham Lincoln, June 15. 1860
Listen to an audio clip of candidate Calvin Coolidge on the subject of Law and Order. It's hard to imagine this monotone voice, this "man of few words" appealing to modern voters. Coolidge faced a public appeal challenge even in his own day, yet voters elected Coolidge when he ran. Coolidge's emphasis on traditional values, frugality and economy in government would be familiar topics in a presidential debate today. If a candidate's message speaks to the people, if they choose their issues wisely, the office of president may be theirs. This was true in Coolidge's time; is it still true today?
Over time the media has changed, and today's campaign strategies reflect the use of statistical analysis and the science of influence and affect. Today, a candidate's every word, every action, and even their perceived thoughts are paraded before the public. However, many of the methods for persuading voters remain essentially the same.
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