Politics & Political Systems, ORL-PRO
This general category includes a selection of more specific topics.
Politics & Political Systems Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Orleanist, any of the constitutional monarchists in 18th- and 19th-century France who favoured the Orléans branch......
Orthodoxy, Autocracy, and Nationality, in Russian history, slogan created in 1832 by Count Sergey S. Uvarov, minister......
Ostend Manifesto, (October 18, 1854), communication from three U.S. diplomats to Secretary of State William L.......
overload, in political science, proposed concept claiming that liberal democracy has become ungovernable. The overload......
Provisions of Oxford, (1258), in English history, a plan of reform accepted by Henry III, in return for the promise......
pacifism, the principled opposition to war and violence as a means of settling disputes. Pacifism may entail the......
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), political party of Pakistan founded in 1996 by Imran Khan, a popular cricketer......
pale, (from Latin palus, “stake”), district separated from the surrounding country by defined boundaries or distinguished......
paleoconservatism, movement within American conservatism that seeks, among other goals, to preserve the country’s......
Palestinian Authority (PA), governing body of the Palestinian autonomous regions in the West Bank. Established......
Palmer Raids, raids conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice in 1919 and 1920 in an attempt to arrest foreign......
Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), organization founded in December 1902 to improve health conditions in......
Pan-Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC), South African organization and later political party pursuing “Africanist”......
Pan-Arabism, nationalist notion of cultural and political unity among Arab countries. Its origins lie in the late......
Pan-Germanism, movement whose goal was the political unification of all people speaking German or a Germanic language.......
Pan-Scandinavianism, an unsuccessful 19th-century movement for Scandinavian unity that enflamed passions during......
Pan-Slavism, 19th-century movement that recognized a common ethnic background among the various Slav peoples of......
Pan-Turanianism, late 19th- and early 20th-century movement to unite politically and culturally all the Turkic,......
Pan-Turkism, political movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which had as its goal the political......
Pancasila, the Indonesian state philosophy, formulated by the Indonesian nationalist leader Sukarno. It was first......
Pangkor Engagement, (1874), treaty between the British government and Malay chiefs in Perak, the first step in......
Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK), social democratic political party in Greece. The Panhellenic Socialist......
Parliament Act of 1911, act passed Aug. 10, 1911, in the British Parliament which deprived the House of Lords of......
parliamentary system, democratic form of government in which the party (or a coalition of parties) with the greatest......
Parti Québécois, provincial Canadian political party founded in 1968 by journalist René Lévesque and other French......
Parti Rouge, radical party formed in Canada East (now Quebec) about 1849 and inspired primarily by the French-Canadian......
Partisan, member of a guerrilla force led by the Communist Party of Yugoslavia during World War II against the......
partisanship, in democratic politics and government, a strong adherence, dedication, or loyalty to a political......
passport, a formal document or certification issued by a national government identifying a traveler as a citizen......
patrimonialism, form of political organization in which authority is based primarily on the personal power exercised......
patriotism, feeling of attachment and commitment to a country, nation, or political community. Patriotism (love......
Peace Corps, U.S. government agency of volunteers, established by executive order by Pres. John F. Kennedy on March......
Peel Commission, group headed by Lord Robert Peel, appointed in 1936 by the British government to investigate the......
Peloponnesian League, military coalition of Greek city-states led by Sparta, formed in the 6th century bc. League......
Pendleton Civil Service Act, (Jan. 16, 1883), landmark U.S. legislation establishing the tradition and mechanism......
People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Nigerian political party founded in August 1998 by members of numerous groups......
perestroika, program instituted in the Soviet Union by Mikhail Gorbachev in the mid-1980s to restructure Soviet......
Peronist, in Argentine politics, a supporter of Juan Perón, a member of the Justicialist Party (Partido Justicialista;......
petition, written instrument directed to some individual, official, legislative body, or court in order to redress......
philosopher king, idea according to which the best form of government is that in which philosophers rule. The ideal......
Phoenix Park murders, (May 6, 1882), an assassination in Dublin that involved the stabbing of the British chief......
Pipiolo and Pelucón, members of the two political partisan groups active in Chilean politics for about a century......
Synod of Pistoia, a diocesan meeting held in 1786 that was important in the history of Jansenism, a nonorthodox,......
Plaid Cymru, political party that has sought self-government for Wales and worked for the protection and promotion......
the Plain, in the French Revolution, the centrist deputies in the National Convention (1792–95). They formed the......
Planning Commission, agency of the government of India established in 1950 to oversee the country’s economic and......
plebiscite, a vote by the people of an entire country or district to decide on some issue, such as choice of a......
pluralism, in political science, the view that in liberal democracies power is (or should be) dispersed among a......
plurality system, electoral process in which the candidate who polls more votes than any other candidate is elected.......
pocket borough, election district that is controlled by, or “in the pocket” of, one person or family. The term......
policy analysis, evaluation and study of the formulation, adoption, and implementation of a principle or course......
polis, ancient Greek city-state. The small state in Greece originated probably from the natural divisions of the......
War of the Polish Succession, (1733–38), general European conflict waged ostensibly to determine the successor......
Politburo, in Russian and Soviet history, the supreme policy-making body of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.......
political action committee (PAC), in U.S. politics, an organization whose purpose is to raise and distribute campaign......
political convention, meeting of delegates of a political party at the local, state, provincial, or national level......
political culture, in political science, a set of shared views and normative judgments held by a population regarding......
political machine, in U.S. politics, a party organization, headed by a single boss or small autocratic group, that......
political party, a group of persons organized to acquire and exercise political power. Political parties originated......
political philosophy, branch of philosophy that is concerned, at the most abstract level, with the concepts and......
- Introduction
- Enlightenment, Natural Rights, Sovereignty
- Aristotle, Ethics, Politics
- Augustine, Just War, City of God
- Hobbes, Leviathan, Social Contract
- Locke, Natural Rights, Social Contract
- Rousseau, Social Contract, Liberty
- Constitutionalism, Rights, Liberties
- 20th Century, Democracy, Equality
- Habermas, Discourse, Rationality
- Foucault, Postmodernism, Power
political science, the systematic study of governance by the application of empirical and generally scientific......
political spectrum, a model for classifying political actors, parties, or ideologies along one or more axes that......
political system, the set of formal legal institutions that constitute a “government” or a “state.” This is the......
- Introduction
- Autocracy, Democracy, Oligarchy
- Confederations, Federations, Unions
- Government, Structure, Processes
- Federalism, Sovereignty, Autonomy
- Cities, Governance, Institutions
- Classification, Types, Functions
- Hereditary, Succession, Monarchy
- Autocracy, Non-Autocracy, Democracy
- Structure, Government, Power
- Dictatorship, Autocracy, Oppression
- Constitution, Government, Law
- Regional, State, Government
- Divisions, Government, Politics
- Executive, Government, Power
- Functions, Governance, Structure
- Regulation, Economy, Markets
- Development, Change, Dynamics
- Stability, Governance, Institutions
poll tax, in English history, a tax of a uniform amount levied on each individual, or “head.” Of the poll taxes......
polyarchy, concept coined by the American political scientist Robert Dahl to denote the acquisition of democratic......
Popish Plot, (1678), in English history, a totally fictitious but widely believed plot in which it was alleged......
Popolare, an Italian political party organized in 1919 and inspired by Christian Socialist principles. The formation......
popolo, (Italian: “people”), in the communes (city-states) of 13th-century Italy, a pressure group instituted to......
popular front, any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties united for the defense of democratic forms......
Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, Angolan political party. The MPLA, founded in 1956, merged two nationalist......
Popular Party, Spanish conservative political party. The Popular Party (PP) traces its origins to the Popular Alliance,......
Popular Republican Movement, former French social reform party whose policies corresponded largely to the European......
populism, political program or movement that champions, or claims to champion, the common person, usually by favourable......
Populist Movement, in U.S. history, politically oriented coalition of agrarian reformers in the Midwest and South......
Porfiriato, the period of Porfirio Díaz’s presidency of Mexico (1876–80; 1884–1911), an era of dictatorial rule......
postcolonialism, the historical period or state of affairs representing the aftermath of Western colonialism; the......
power, in political science and sociology, the capacity to influence, lead, dominate, or otherwise have an impact......
balance of power, in international relations, the posture and policy of a nation or group of nations protecting......
separation of powers, division of the legislative, executive, and judicial functions of government among separate......
Poznań Riots, (June 1956), uprising of Polish industrial workers that caused a crisis among the Polish communist......
Pragmatic Sanction of Emperor Charles VI, (April 19, 1713), decree promulgated by the Holy Roman emperor Charles......
Prarthana Samaj, (Sanskrit: “Prayer Society”), Hindu reform society established in Bombay in the 1860s. In purpose......
precautionary principle, approach in policy making that legitimizes the adoption of preventative measures to address......
presidency of the United States of America, chief executive office of the United States. In contrast to many countries......
In contrast to many countries with parliamentary forms of government, where the office of president, or head of......
President’s Commission on the Status of Women, advisory commission established on December 14, 1961, by U.S. President......
primary election, in the United States, an election to select candidates to run for public office. Primaries may......
Australia, established as a federated union in 1901, is a constitutional monarchy, and its government is led by......
Privy Council, historically, the British sovereign’s private council. Once powerful, the Privy Council has long......
Progressive Bloc, coalition of moderate conservatives and liberals in the fourth Russian Duma (elected legislative......
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, former national political party in Canada, historically (with the Liberal......
Progressive Democrats, conservative political party that was founded in 1985 as a result of a split within Ireland’s......
Progressive Federal Party (PFP), former South African political party established in 1977 in the merger of the......
Progressive Party, (1924), in the United States, a short-lived independent political party assembled for the 1924......
Progressive Party, (1948), in the United States, a dissident political faction founded in 1947 by Henry A. Wallace,......
Prohibition Party, oldest minor U.S. political party still in existence. It was founded in 1869 to campaign for......
Project Paperclip, U.S. government program that sponsored the post-World War II immigration of German and Austrian......
Promoters Revolution, (June 24, 1932), in the history of Thailand, a bloodless coup that overthrew the Thai king,......
proportional representation, electoral system that seeks to create a representative body that reflects the overall......
protofascism, a political movement that predates and usually contributes to the emergence of fascism in a given......