what is democracy?

  • Democracy means rule by the people

    • considered a revolutionary idea

    • a democratic society makes major decisions for themselves, directly or indirectly

    Terms of Democracy:

  • Participation: before a decision is made, all have an equal and effective opportunity to make their opinions known to others about which decision should be made;

  • Voting Equality: when a decision is to be made, every member must have an equal and effective opportunity to vote; all votes must be counted as equal.

  • Understanding: each person must have equal and effective opportunities for learning about the relevant alternative choices and the likely outcomes.

  • Agenda Setting: each person must have the opportunity to decide how to set the agenda and what to place on the agenda so that past decisions are always open to be revisited.

  • Universal: all adults should have the same rights, as citizens, that are necessary for participation, voting equality, understanding and setting the agenda.

why is democracy important?

  • democracy provides the basis for legitimacy

  • it underpins legitimacy in 3 ways:

    • consent

      • citizens invested with political authority

    • dispersion

      • citizens allowed to use their voice in various ways

    • feedback

      • reps can be voted in or out depending on legal wishes

key features of direct democracy:

  • popular participation is direct in that the people ‘make’ policy decision - they do not choose who will rule on their behalf

  • popular participation is immediate in that the people ‘are’ the government - there is no separate class of professional politicians

  • popular participation is continuous in that people engage in politics on a regular and ongoing basis - all decisions are made by the people

should be seen as a valuable addition to representative democracy rather than a separate system, adding to the legitimacy of politicians’ decisions

advantages

disadvantages

purest form of democracy - people’s voice is clearly heard

can lead to tyranny of the majority: the winning majority simply ignores the minority, imposing something detrimental on them

can avoid delay & deadlock within the political system

people may be too easily swayed by the short-term emotional appeals by charismatic individuals

great legitimacy in the people making a decisions

some issues may be too complex for the ordinary citizen to understand

representative democracy: the concept:

  • representative democracy sometimes known as indirect democracy, it operates by allowing representatives to speak for, and act on behalf of, the people

  • a process (usually elections) takes place where these reps can be chosen and removed and therefore popular participation is:

    • indirect: the public do not exercise power themselves'; they choose who will rule on their behalf

    • mediated: the people are linked to gov through representative institutions

    • limited: the public are restricted to the act of voting every few years

representative democracy: the conditions:

  • based on principle of popular control

    • ensure pro politicians rep the people n not themselves

  • basic conditions for rep dem is ∴ the existence of dem elections based on:

    • freedom, fairness n regularity

    • universal suffrage

    • party n candidate competition

  • historically = simply a case of voting in general n local elections, but opportunities have increased in recent years

    • elections for devolved govs in Scotland, Wales n NI since 1998

    • elections for London Mayor n Greater London Authority since 2000

    • elections for metro mayors eg Mayor of Greater Manchester since 2017

    • elections for MEPs to go into European Parliament (1979-2019)

    • elections for Police Crime Commissioners since 2012

types of representation:

  • when a rep casts their vote on your behalf, they may be voting to reconcile their rep’tion in a no. of ways

    • social rep’tion

    • repping the national interest

    • constituency rep’tion

    • party rep’tion

    • occupational/social rep’tion

    • casual rep’tion

representative democracy:

ADVANTAGES

DISADVANTAGES

reps can develop expertise to deal with matters the public does not have the time/knowledge to deal with

reps may not act in the best interests of their constituents

reps can be held to account for their actions @election time

it can be difficult to hold a rep to account between elections

reps have the time to deal with a variety of complex matters, leaving public free to get on with their own lives

allowing voters to delegate responsibility to reps can lead to the public disengaging from social issues n other responsibilities

in a large modern country, it’s the only practical way to translate public opinion into political action

rep bodies can be unresponsive and may ignore the concerns and needs of minorities

Q: Is direct democracy superior to representative democracy?

yes:

no:

it’s the only pure form of democracy

representative democracy relieves citizens from day-to-day decision-making

it creates better informed and more knowledgeable citizens

rep democracy is the only form that can operate in large societies like the UK

it reduces/removes public dependence on self-serving pro politicians

rep democracy places decisions in the hands of politicians who have better education and expertise

ensures rules is legit - people are more likely to accept decisions they’ve made themselves

rep democracy maintains political stability by helping to distance ordinary citizens from politics

rep democracy means people can ‘switch off’ from politics

direct democracy only works in small communities

rep democracy always means there is a gulf between gov and the people

direct democracy restricts the ability to carry out other duties n activities

rep democracy puts too much faith in politicians who distort public opinion with their own view n preference

it isn’t the way to make complex decision

turnout shows rep democracy is experiencing a crisis

it can engage people too much n create divisions in society