2) Democracy and Participation Flashcards
3 key features of Direct Democracy
It is direct, unmediated and continuous
What is the direct feature of DD?
The people themselves make the decisions they do not choose people to rule on their behalf
What does unmediated mean?
The people are the government, there is no mediating body
What does continuous mean?
People engage in politics on a regular and ongoing basis- all decisions are made by the people
How do people acquire power in a representative democracy?
Through a competitive struggle for the people’s vote
What do those who win elections do?
Represent the people
What is the basic condition for representative democracy?
The existence of democratic elections
What ensures a democratic election?
Free, fair and regular elections, universal suffrage and party and candidate competition
What is universal suffrage?
Everybody can vote
What are the three key features of representative democracy?
Limited, indirect and mediated
What does limited mean?
Elections are infrequent and brief, people only vote once every few years
What does indirect mean?
The public themselves do not rule, they elect someone to rule on their behalf
The meaning of mediated?
The people are linked to government through representative institutions, there is a middle man
What percentage of the population of the UK say they engage in protests?
4%
According to a survey in 2012, how many people were going to vote in the following election?
Less than half
How many people out of 10 believe that Parliament encourages public involvement
3
Strengths of representative democracy
Places power in the hands of the public, only form of democracy that can work in a modern society, government by experts, relieves burden of decisions from citizens, maintains political stability by allowing a distance between people and politics
Weaknesses of Representative democracy
Creates a gap between government and the people, places too much faith in politicians, act of voting seen as a ritual, representatives unaccountable and government too tied to political parties
Strengths of Direct democracy
It is the only pure form of democracy as people only obey the laws they made themselves, creates better informed and knowledgeable citizens and reduces or removes public dependence on politicians
Weaknesses of direct democracy
Only achievable in small countries, politics becomes a second job for all citizens- restricting them, it would take too long to gather everyone together and a mass audience is easily swayed by passionate speeches , even if they distort the issues