Constitutional Choices For New Democracies

Student Name Professor Name Course Date Constitutional Choices for New Democracies As a professor of sociology and political science, Arend Lijphart has researched about different electoral systems and democratic regimes. In “Constitutional Choices for New Democracies,” he highlights two main choices that have confronted architects of democratic constitutions: those between presidential and parliamentary forms of government, and those between PR (proportional representation) and plurality elections. In other words, we can say that there are two main explanations to why politicians respond to institutional weaknesses with the vertical power concentration: political competition and perceived national interests. First of all, the politicians often stand above partisan conflicts to pursue national interests, and to provide lots of benefits to the society. For this, they are ready to take painful yet fundamental decisions. It should be noticed that sophisticated conditions like ethnic divisions, economic and financial crisis require the president to make decisions immediately. For this, he should possess great leadership skills and must be ready to work under pressure, taking swift actions and benefiting people in one way or the other. When it comes to facing problems and challenges, some leaders claim that their nation needs decisive and firm leadership. Does it mean they aren’t eligible for this position? There are different merits for parliamentarism and presidentialism, and not all leaders are capable of for these two positions. Thus, they should be replaced on an immediate basis or should be trai...