A: Clode's Right Political Dictionary
“Absent / Absentee vote” In some electoral systems, people who will not be within the electorate for which they are enrolled during the hours of polling may vote at any polling booth in another electorate, by asking for an absent vote. Usually absentee voters will be asked for photographic identification and they must sign a declaration claiming that they are eligible to vote. A false declaration will often be punishable as a criminal offence. Absentee votes are set aside in specially marked envelopes for subsequent scrutiny by electoral officials. The use of double envelopes will ensure the secrecy of the vote, so that a polling official cannot compare the vote against the declaration completed by the voter.
“Absolutism” Absolutism is a form of government which vests supreme power in a dictator or a regime which is unconstrained by constitutional law. Absolutist regimes usually lack an independent judiciary or other attributes of a separation of powers.
“Act (of Parliament)” An act is a law made by parliament. An act is created after a “bill” has been debated (and sometimes amended) in parliament and has then been signed into law by the head of state.
“Advancing” / “Advance Team” An advance team is a group of people who plan the fine details of a candidate’s election campaign itinerary. Before a candidate visits a destination, the advance team goes out in advance of the candidate to that destination. The advance team traces the route that a candidate walks to ensure that there are no obstacles, to check that there is room for television cameras to film (with adequate electrical connections), to plan where supporters and the general public will stand. They even plan fine details like who will handshake who, and when. If the candidate is to give a speech, they ensure that the backdrop will be visually effective on camera, they test acoustics, and examine anything which could go wrong. The time of day is checked – to ensure there are no regular disruptions like churchbells. If the candidate is a prominent national figure, there may also be a need for security specialists to check where undercover police should be positioned, or to take other measures that would minimise any chance of a security breach. Usually advance teams will try to trace the ground days before a visit, with double-checks made on the day of, or the day before the candidate’s visit.
“AGM” An “AGM” is an anagram for an “Annual General Meeting” at which party members elect office holders or committee members to serve for the next year.
“Alderman” An alderman is a member of a municipal board who helps to decide local government policy. Aldermen are usually popularly elected, but individuals may in cases be co-opted for some special expertise which they possess.
“Amnesty” An amnesty is an exemption from criminal prosecution and punishment, granted by government or its law-enforcement authorities. An amnesty is usually granted to groups of people, rather than to specific individuals. It is also often linked to conditions. For example a weapons amnesty would allow people possessing illegal firearms to hand over their guns within a prescribed period, without prosecution. Amnesties are different from pardons, in that pardons are granted after a conviction, whereas amnesties are granted as a waiver before people are convicted. Ironically, the famous group Amnesty International does not primarily campaign for “amnesties” for outlaws who are wanted by authorities, instead their priority is to campaign for pardons and releases of existing political prisoners.
“Anarchism” / “Anarchists” The anarchist political movement espouses the extinguishment of all government authority and law. Often anarchists have been guilty of political violence, civil disobedience, or assassination attempts. Anarchists should not be confused with libertarians: the latter group believe in individual freedom protected by the rule of law, which implies the need for some form of minimal government. Although anarchists advocate a political mission for individuals to be unconstrained by law, they lack an intellectual body of writing in support of their agitation. There are several historic reasons for this intellectual vacuum. During the 20th century, Nationalist and Communist groups often organised and funded anarchist front groups and used them to create violence at public protests (sometimes they would recruit nihilistic personalities under the pretext that the group was genuine in its anarchist belief). To this day, some anarchists still have not understood the Communist joke which was had at their expense.
“Arbitration” Arbitration is a method of settling disputes, by reference of a problem to an authority which is independent of the parties. Often arbitration is government mandated, using the force of law to impose the settlement. Unlike conciliation, which creates outcomes negotiated between the parties to a dispute, arbitration involves an outcome decided by the independent arbitrator. An arbitral authority may be an individual, a court, a board, or a specialist tribunal which is knowledgeable about the issues in dispute. Arbitration is common in the settlement of disputes between employers and employees, and in the settlement of international disputes between countries. Arbitration over labour disputes is usually coupled with conciliation (the standard socialist scheme involves conciliation being tried first, then failing that arbitration is enforced by law). In labour disputes, arbitration is often used to end strikes, lockouts, or sporadic industrial action such as sabotage of equipment. More generally, it is used to settle or revise wages and conditions of employment. Compulsory arbitration is most commonly invoked by governments when a labour dispute becomes injurious to the general public.
“Appropriation” This is a parliamentary motion to approve spending of taxpayer money for a specified purpose. The objective of an appropriation motion is to constrain the government executive from spending money without popular approval from the people’s representatives. Appropriation motions originated in the fourteenth century in England, becoming a regular practice in the seventeenth century. In countries with written constitutions, appropriations are often a legal precondition of government spending. (See “Separation of Powers”; “Ultra Vires”.)
“Assent” Once a law is approved by parliament it does not usually come into force immediately unless it is “assented to” by the Head of State. This involves the signing of the law by the President in a republic or Governor-General in a Commonwealth country. This is the last step in making a bill into a law. In the state parliaments a Governor or similar officer signs the bill. (See “Veto” – the opposite process)