AO1: Party systems in Congress and Parliament AO2: Both the UK and USA tend to be dominated by two major parties, but with more minor party representation in the UK Parliament; there have also been occasions when the UK Parliament has not been able to rely in this traditional dominance to form a government and instead formed a coalition or minority government; unlike the USA where the Democrats or Republicans have always dominated Congress and minor parties are not represented. AO1: Party system for executive/government AO2: The US presidency has always been dominated by the 2 main parties – while independents have made inroads in terms of gaining popular support, e.g. Sanders and Perot, they have never been a serious contender for the presidency, whereas in the UK there have been occasions where minor parties have been invited to form the government in coalition, e.g. Liberal Democrats and the DUP. AO1: Party system and federalism/devolution AO2: The 2-party system tends to be replicated in the states in the US with the Republicans and Democrats dominating most state gubernatorial positions and legislatures. However, the UK devolved bodies tend to be more representative of multiple parties, e.g. Scottish Parliament has been dominated at different times by the Labour Party and the SNP – this is mainly due to the differences in electoral systems with FPTP in the USA, and proportional representation in the devolved bodies in the UK. AO1: Party system and independents/third or minor parties AO2: Independents and third parties do appear in both countries – but tend to perform better in the US at a gubernatorial level or local level – for independents, more likely to be appearing where candidates have an existing media/celebrity profile; whereas there is more reliance on a third/minor party for success in the AO1: UK, where there are examples of successes at all levels of government. AO2: Whether there is a multi-party system in the UK compared to 2-party/50-party theory in USA. AO1: Arguably the US has a 2-party or a 50-party system due to federalism, whereas the UK has moved towards a multi-party system with a wide range of parties represented at all levels of government and enjoying governmental success in the devolved regions.