Apart from voting in elections, writing a letter to a local councillor, MP or MEP is one popular type of participation. Joining political parties or a pressure group is another form. The participation scale ranges from complete inactivity to full-time activity.
Individual supporters of a large number of people having the same opinion increase pressure on decision makers to act in their favour. Collecting and signing petitions, marches, rallies and mass lobbies of parliament are organised mainly by pressure groups. Some also take part in more direct action such as publicity stunts aimed at getting the attention of the media. Indeed, the mass media plays a big role in setting the political agenda and design political activity accordingly. In Britain, whilst a vast majority of people participate in a general election, only a minority participate beyond these polls. In the end, only a quarter of people in Britain can be described as political activists.
Individual supporters of a large number of people having the same opinion increase pressure on decision makers to act in their favour. Collecting and signing petitions, marches, rallies and mass lobbies of parliament are organised mainly by pressure groups. Some also take part in more direct action such as publicity stunts aimed at getting the attention of the media. Indeed, the mass media plays a big role in setting the political agenda and design political activity accordingly. In Britain, whilst a vast majority of people participate in a general election, only a minority participate beyond these polls. In the end, only a quarter of people in Britain can be described as political activists.
