Many countries today use a type of federalism as their democracy in order to govern their countries and create new legislation. However, their are different types of federalism that people have argued over which type is better. The first type is Asymmetric federalism where different regions in the country have different powers. States such as India and Canada use this type of federalism. The other is systematic federalism where all regions of the state hold the same amount of powers. The United States is the most known country that practices this kind. What is kind of federalism is better though, and which states people are more satisfied with how they are being ruled. First, lets look at Canada's overall happiness with their asymmetric system.
The graph shows us that the satisfaction with democracy in Canada has grown a decent amount over the last decade. But it is important to look at the different regions to get the true story. In Quebec the ratings have steadily grown and it looks like people are growing increasingly happy with their government. However, in Alberta the ratings dropped drastically in 2019. Why is this? “Quebecs status as a minority nation within the larger Canadian federal state — and one whos political leaders frequently contest the extent of the autonomy afforded to the province under the current federal arrangement” (The Conversation). This is a great example of how the asymmetric system can benefit certain regions that may hold certain powers that make their citizens more satisfied. In Alberta the numbers drastically began to drop after 2015 when new leadership was elected to the region. Since then, citizens have felt more at risk with their new leader and less satisfied with the government. So the asymmetric system can be beneficial but it depends on what powers your regions hold and who is in leadership.
Comparing this to the Symmetric system in the United States where all regions have the same powers their is a drastic difference. In these graphs is shows how the satisfaction of the symmetric system in American has dropped drastically since the 1990s to today. We also see how Canada's satisfaction has stayed the same after two decades. Americans believe not enough legislation is being passed and the division of powers may be preventing this from happening. Especially in a two party system where ideologies can be so divided. So comparing the tow types of federalism it seems to show that asymmetric federalism leads to more happy citizens and a state that is generally more satisfied with their government.
https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/media/uploads/files/DemocracyReport2020.pdf
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/poll-majority-of-americans-dissatisfied-with-u-s-politics-doubt-divisons-will-improve-soon
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