DEFINITION / EXPLANATION

TERM	DEFINITION / EXPLANATION
Member of Parliament	Those people who have been elected to represent us in parliament
Backbenchers	Those members of the Government not in the cabinet
Governor General	The Queen’s representative in N.Z
Electorate	The area a Member of Parliament represents
Cabinet	Made up of the Prime Minister and her ministries
Leader of the Opposition	Leader of the Opposition in 2012 is David Shearer
Adolf Hitler	An example of a Dictator who ruled Germany from 1933-1945
Opposition	The chief political party opposing the one that is in power
Democracy	A system of government which allows people to have their say, through voting and the election of their representatives.
Nelson Mandela	An example of a President.  He was the leader of the Republic of South Africa.
George Bush	An example of a president who is the leader of the United States
List M.P	Those people who have been elected to represent us in parliament
Electorate M.P	Represents a specific geographical area in Parliament, acts as a general M.P.
Saddam Hussein	An example of a dictator.  He was the leader of Iraq.
The speaker	Controls the debate in the House of Parliament
Republic	A country that has a president as a leader
Elections	The way we choose, by voting, who will represent us in parliament
Dictatorship	Is the period of time a dictator rules a country
Laws	a set of rules that everyone must obey. They are decided by parliament.
Prime minister	The leader of our country.
Ministers	The group of people who are in charge of the public affairs of a country
Coalition Government	When two or more parties agree to govern together
President	The person in charge of a republic