THE SEARCH FOR TRUE REPRESENTATION Conflicting Views of the American Presidential System and the British Parliamentary System Within the political world, political scientists have researched and studied many different democratic governments. Test and analyze many different factors by which you can accurately describe their overall effectiveness with respect to maintaining the very precept of promoting democracy. The purpose of this essay will be to compare both the British parliamentary system with the American presidential system. It would be fair to compare our current democratic government to that of our former colonizers, whose parliamentary system is a form of government from which we borrow many great influences. Furthermore, these two countries share very similar qualities with each other. These include cultural ties, similar governing bodies, and an overall similar political orientation. These similarities will allow me to maintain greater overall control with respect to addressing the differences between the two governments. The objective of this article is to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of both systems with respect to promoting the very quality of democracy in their respective societies. By definition, in order to discuss which system will serve as a tool to best promote democracy, this article will explain the many differences between the two systems with important comments from academic scholars who are experts on the subject. This article will begin with a discussion of both the British parliamentary and American presidential systems. This discussion will compare the differences with respect to elections, elected officials, and their respective houses (Congress and House of Commons). Next...... middle of paper...... who, if elected, will form the Cabinet. The head of government within this system is the Prime Minister, who serves as the head of both the executive and legislative branches. Prime Ministers gain power through their political party, which typically wins the highest percentage of seats after elections, and is ultimately selected by Parliament to fill a role. Essentially, this takes away the responsibility of appointing the Prime Minister from citizens while allowing the elected Cabinet to select their preferred candidate. The British Parliamentary System and the American Presidential System: Net Benefits and Downsides Within both of these political systems, there are contrasting differences, but regardless, we must consider the negatives and positives that each system helps create for their respective constituencies they were created to represent.