Notes on Democracy (Week 2): Introduction to Politics and International Relations

Story: United Kingdom of Alison — is it a democracy?

  • P3: The setup

    • King Gary, tyrannical ruler of Garyland, dies; his sister Princess Alison takes over and proclaims amnesty for anti-Gary insurrectionists in the north and east, but not in the south and west.

    • She calls a referendum to rename the state and creates the United Kingdom of Alison.

    • Question posed: Is the United Kingdom of Alison a democracy?

  • P4: Constitutional monarchy and institutions

    • Alison rejects Absolute Monarchy; forms Constitutional Monarchy with Parliament and government.

    • Queen Alison remains Head of State; Lady Vicky (Duchess of Data) becomes Prime Minister; Parliament members are proposed by Vicky and approved by the Queen.

    • Question: Is the United Kingdom of Alison a democracy?

  • P5: Emergence of political parties and electoral rules

    • Sir Jason pushes for a more representative Parliament; two-party system and general rules proposed: only homeowners aged over 3030 and with no criminal record can stand for election; same eligibility to vote.

    • Parliament passes the plan; governance splits regionally (East/North vs South/West); three parties emerge: “Data is Supreme”, “Running is Brilliant”, and “Justice for Gary”.

    • Queen Alison signs the Act of Parliament; a general election invites Lady Vicky’s party to form the government; Sir Jason becomes Leader of the Opposition.

    • Question: Is the United Kingdom of Alison a democracy?

  • P6: Reform of voting rights and election outcomes

    • Sir Jason realises his support base is under 30 and/or not homeowners; proposes dropping homeownership and criminal record requirements; lowers voting/standing age to 18; passes after debate; Sir Jason becomes Prime Minister after a landslide for the “Running is Brilliant” party.

    • Question: Is the United Kingdom of Alison a democracy?

  • P7: Civil unrest, state power, and democratic rights

    • Pete and Chris lead protests; misinformation on social media incites violence; protests become polarized between Alison loyalists and anti-monarchists.

    • Sir Jason uses emergency legislation to ban noisy protests and introduce identity cards; supports no-platforming of pro-Gary activists.

    • Pro-Jason media label Pete and Chris as “Enemies of the People.”

    • Question: Is the United Kingdom of Alison a democracy?

  • P8: Takeaway from the story

    • Democracy is multifaceted; there is no one-size-fits-all model.

What does this story tell us about democracy?

  • Democracy is multifaceted and context-dependent; a single country can exhibit democratic features in some areas and undemocratic traits in others.

  • The story illustrates tensions between popular sovereignty, representation, rule of law, civil liberties, and political pluralism.

  • It highlights risks of:

    • measures that restrict participation (age, homeownership, criminal records),

    • emergency powers limiting protests and civil liberties, and

    • manipulation of information and media dynamics in shaping democratic outcomes.

  • It also demonstrates the danger of “tyranny of the majority” if a popular phase suppresses minority rights (reference to De Tocqueville’s warning).

Definitions of democracy

  • Sorenson (1993): "A FORM OF GOVERNANCE IN WHICH THE PEOPLE RULE".

  • Schumpeter (1950): "The democratic method is that institutional arrangement for arriving at political decisions in which individuals acquire the power to decide by means of a competitive struggle for the people’s vote".

  • Held (1996): "Democracy entails a political community in which there is some form of political equality among the people".

  • De Tocqueville (1835): warns about the risk of the "tyranny of the majority".

Characteristics of democracy (Dahl, 1989)

  • Control over government is constitutionally vested in elected officials.

  • Elected officials are chosen in free, fair, and frequent elections.

  • Practically all adults have the right to vote in elections (universal suffrage).

  • Practically all adults have the right to run for elected office.

  • Citizens have the right to express themselves freely on political matters.

  • Alternative sources of information are legally and freely available.

  • Everyone has the right to form parties, pressure groups and other associations independent of the state.

Processes of democratisation: revolutions, regime change, and social contract ideas

  • Examples and revolutions/regime changes:

    • Swiss consociation founded in 1291; evolved to power-sharing governance.

    • English Glorious Revolution (1688): move from absolute to constitutional monarchy.

    • French and American Revolutions: transfer of power from elites to the masses; birth of citizenship.

    • End of the Cold War: collapse of communist regimes in Eastern Europe.

    • Arab Spring.

  • Social contract theorists: democracy grounded in civil rights via a social contract between the state and citizens (Hobbes; Rousseau).

Processes of democratisation: decolonisation and empire dissolution

  • Decolonisation: Spanish and Portuguese withdrawal from Central and South America; dissolution of European empires after WWI and WWII.

  • Important caveat: not all newly independent states became democracies.

Key elements of democratisation

  • Establishing institutions and procedures to regulate access to power.

  • Competitive and free elections for all political offices.

  • Mass suffrage (direct and indirect).

  • Independent judiciary.

  • Checks and balances and separation of powers (different branches and levels of governance).

  • Open and responsive institutions to serve public needs and preferences.

  • Active and engaged citizenship.

Typologies of democracy

  • Direct Democracy: direct participation of the electorate beyond voting (e.g., referenda, initiative, recall).

  • Indirect Democracy: Representative democracy; electorate elects representatives to exercise power on their behalf.

  • Swiss referenda and recall are classic direct-democracy elements; most modern democracies are indirect.

Activity: Direct democracy vs indirect democracy

  • What are the relative advantages and constraints of each system?

Democratic backsliding: common causes

  • Economic inequality.

  • Culturally conservative reactions to societal changes.

  • External influence from stronger powers.

  • States of Emergency.

  • Promissory coups (incumbent government claims democracy is threatened and is deposed by opponents).

    • Examples cited: Thailand 2007, Pakistan 1999.

Democratic backsliding: key elements

  • Restrictions on participation in electoral processes and public sphere.

  • Reduction in accountability of government to the governed.

  • Restrictions on civil liberties (e.g., curfews, criminalisation of dissent, banning protests, curtailments on freedom of speech).

  • Media restrictions.

  • Cronyism and corruption.

  • Undermining institutions of justice.

Activity: Can democracies ever be authoritarian?

  • Prompt for reflection on whether democratic institutions can be co-opted to permit authoritarian practices, or whether erosion always leads to non-democratisation.

Measuring levels of democracy

  • Economist Democracy Index (EIU) – Our World in Data link: https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/democracy-index-eiu

  • Categories:

    • Full democracy

    • Flawed democracy

    • Hybrid regime

    • Authoritarian regime

  • Measures (aspects):

    • Electoral Process and Pluralism

    • Functioning of Government

    • Political Participation

    • Political Culture

    • Civil Liberties

  • Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) – Transparency International: https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2024

  • Categories: from ‘highly corrupt’ to ‘very clean’

  • Measures include:

    • Bribery

    • Diversion of public funds

    • Prevalence of officials using public office for private gain

    • Red tape and bureaucratic burden (which may increase opportunities for corruption)

    • Meritocratic vs nepotistic appointments in the civil service

  • Quote from TI chair: corruption as a global threat that undermines development, democracy, stability, and human rights; need for action to address global corruption.

  • Freedom House (Freedom in the World 2025): https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2025/uphill-battle-to-safeguard-rights

  • Categories:

    • Free

    • Partially Free

    • Not Free

  • Measures: Tracks the 30 articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Activity: What do you think the value of such democracy measures might be?

  • These measures help compare regimes and track changes over time.

  • They can inform policy, advocacy, and academic research, but may embed biases based on who defines democracy and which elements are weighted more heavily.

  • Cross-country comparisons must account for context, priority differences, and how elements are scored.

Summary: There is no set template for democracy

  • Elements vary across countries due to economic, social, and historical factors.

  • The baseline to be a democracy is relatively low (e.g., competitive elections, suffrage).

  • Democratisation is variable in order and weight of elements; some elements may appear later or be valued differently across contexts.

  • Democratic backsliding is a feature of many democracies under stress.

  • Indices can be useful but watch for biases in who designs and weights them; avoid assuming a single universal template for democracy.

Self-assessment activity (reflective prompts)

  • Strengths

    • What are you doing well?

    • What have you learnt?

    • What interests you?

    • Have you identified goals? What are they? How will you pursue them?

  • Opportunities

    • What opportunities exist to apply this knowledge?

  • Weaknesses

    • What is challenging? What needs improvement? How will you address it for future learning?

  • Future

    • How will this learning help you in the future and after this course?