Intro to (liberal) democracy

Democracy - etymology

‘demos’ - the people

‘kratos’ - power

“Power of the people”

Democracy - definition

Political systems that are organised on the idea that government should serve the interests of the people.

Liberal democracies - what else is expected? (2)

1. Citizens should influence decisions, or make decisions themselves.

2. Government should be held accountable to the people.

What are features of a liberal democracy?

1. Entrenched and enshrined rights and liberties

2. Regular free and fair elections

3. Free press to scrutinise government

4. Constitution establishing a limited government with checks and balances

5. Pluralism

6. Tolerance towards different groups and views

Liberal democracy - definition

Combination of both liberalism (freedom + equality) with democracy (power of the people)

Militocracy

Run by armed forces

Bureaucracy - definition

Run by civil servants

Aristocracy - definition

Run by nobles

Timocracy - definition

Run by landowners

Plutocracy - definition

Run by the wealthy.

What are the two key features of democracy?

1. Participation

2. Equality

Participation - definition

Key decisions made by the people, or their representatives.

Equality - definition

Everyone has an equal opportunity to influence key political decisions.

Abe Lincoln’s 3 pillars of a democracy

1. Government of the people (freedom to vote and protest)

2. Government by the people (should be consulted and make decisions)

3. Government for the people (Should have citizen’s best interests at heart)

What is separation of powers with checks and balances?

keeping the three branches of government separate, with checks to prevent any branch from becoming too powerful and unresponsive to the will of the people.

Pluralism vs elitism

Pluralism - power is dispersed across a large number of pressure groups which can encourage the gov to make certain decisions

Elitism - power is concentrated in a wealthy influential group of people who have a lot of influence over the government.