Evaluate The Argument That Direct Democracy Is Superior To Representative Democracy

Introduction

• Direct Democracy = a type of democracy that emerged from the Athens in which all individuals express their opinions themselves eg. the 2016 Brexit Referendum

• Representative Democracy = a form of democracy where individuals select a person/political party to exercise political choice on their behalf eg. when the British electorate voted in Labour in the 2024 general election

Paragraph Focus

• Para 1 = Effectiveness

• Para 2 = Representation

Para 1 - Weaker Argument = Direct Democracy

• It can be argued that direct democracy is superior to representative democracy as it can deliver effective representation in practise

• MPs rely on their parties to gain power and are whipped heavily by them to vote with the party in government

• If fails to do so, they have little chance of climbing the party, and as a consequence, rarely vote against the party line

• Direct democracy can therefore be seen as superior in practise as there is no possibility for the views and wishes of the public to be ignored or manipulated to serve the interests of politicians

Para 1 - Stronger Argument = Representative Democracy

• Eg. in the 2024 general election, voting concluded at 22:00 on the 4^th July and counting began immediately, with the first result declared at 23:15 in Houghton and Sunderland South where Labour’s Bridget Phillipson retained her seat

• This shows that representative is more practical in a large modern state as there is a streamlined process of counting votes for candidates

• This means that government can accurately and effectively ensure the winning party is in government to continue the governing process

Para 2 - Weaker Argument = Direct Democracy

Para 2 - Stronger Argument = Representative Democracy

• Reform UK MP for Great Yarmouth, Rupert Lowe, voted in favour of the landmark Terminally Ill Adults Bill 2024 after hosting a mini-referendum in his constituency. 

• He promised to vote according to the majority of the wishes of people in his constituency

• This shows how Parliament can be representative and how MPs seek to represent the views of their constituents. 

• As FPTP creates single member constituencies, MPs can represent their interests in Parliament and voters are able to hold their MP to account and vote them out if they don’t do so effectively.

• This is also an example of a representative trying to introduce an element of direct democracy in how they represent their constituents.