Questions tagged [democracy]
For questions about democracy, a system of government in many countries involving citizens voting, as opposed to dictatorships and other forms of government where normal people don't have control of what it does.
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1answer
101 views
What moral hazards are possible when a government produces its own currency; vs when it doesn't? [closed]
Assuming a political system is a representative democracy, and that group also produces a currency, what moral hazards are possible?
I'm thinking that policy can be compared to my physics 101 class ...
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2answers
532 views
Is there any region that considers to or already uses Demarchy?
According to this article, Demarchy is a form of statistical representative democracy which rely on collective intelligence:
Improving on the age-old model of sortition democracy, by which the
...
3
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1answer
1k views
What did Carl Schmitt mean when he said this?
Can someone explain this quote by Schmitt, please? It's hard to understand without any context.
“Every actual democracy rests on the principle that not only are equals equal but unequals will not be ...
3
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0answers
307 views
What was the most measurably unpopular law ever passed in USA?
Theoretically, in a democracy, laws that pass are - or should be, in theory - at least somewhat popular.
In a representative democracy, they may be less so (by design).
What was the law that was the ...
6
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1answer
151 views
Is there a recommended number of representatives in European democratic countries?
In 2009, Romania had a referendum for reducing the Parliament size to a maximum of 300 seats. However, it was never implemented and in fact, the number of the seats increased to nearly 600.
This ...
9
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1answer
385 views
What is special about a Jeffersonian Democracy?
I came across the phrase Jeffersonian Democracy recently (related to "U.S. stated goal of ushering in a Jeffersonian democracy to replace Syrian President Bashar Assad"; article here), but I don't see ...
5
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2answers
297 views
Why is a hung parliament in the UK a bad thing?
Why is a parliamentary majority so important? Is it really of benefit?
10
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1answer
1k views
What does “… Americans enjoy … a widespread (if still contested) franchise” mean?
I'm reading on oligarchs, and came across this on Wikipedia (from the fourth paragraph):
The study [conceded] "Americans do enjoy many features central to
democratic governance, such as regular ...
2
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1answer
143 views
Are there ways to keep the majority in check in a unicameral legislative system?
Are there ways to setup a legislative system that keeps the ruling majority in check without needing to split the body up into a bicameral pair of chambers?
I know bicameral systems aren't perfect, ...
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6answers
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What stops the United States from becoming “undemocratic”?
Hypothetically, let's say the conservatives in America were to run on a religious platform and win with an overwhelming majority. What stops them from voting out the current constitution and re-...
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1answer
865 views
Does the UK electorate become more likely to vote conservative with age?
Context
Using the General Election 2017 as an example, YouGov believe that Young people voted for Labour whereas the older generation voted for The Conservative party.
It seems to me that from ...
18
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16answers
4k views
Why do working class people vote for the political right?
Some analysis of the 2017 General Election in the UK has been published in the Financial Times, which seems to indicate that people without a university degree, who were working class, and had poor ...
5
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1answer
533 views
Is there a legal way to postpone or call off a general election in the UK due to concerns one way or another?
I'm asking this as a follow up question after this one when Steve Melnikoff raised an interesting point in the comments as to whether there was a legal mechanism to postpone or call off a general ...
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2answers
187 views
Has an election ever been called off due to a terror attack?
This morning, UK Prime Minister Theresa May announced that the general election on June the 8th will go ahead despite the London Bridge Terror Attack.
Is there a precedent of an election being called ...
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1answer
279 views
Is political education a necessity for a democracy? [closed]
To quote Lincoln's Gettysburg Address a democracy is
Government of the people, by the people, for the people
But how can a democracy function effectively if the population are not educated about ...
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7answers
4k views
What is the rationale for foreign interference in a democratic election being intrinsically bad?
In Sanders on Trump and the challenge for the left – full transcript (published in the Guardian, which was behind Operation Clark County), Sanders describe Russian interference in the US presidential ...
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1answer
149 views
Is tactical voting a relatively new phenomenon?
I've only heard of people "tactically voting" -- whereby they don't vote for their first choice, but their nearest choice that contends with an incumbent or person/party they don't want -- over the ...
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1answer
178 views
Why did the french government disempower the legislative (which had an oppositional opinion to a proposed act) to force an unpopular act?
To cite this article from rubikon.news:
Denn was französische Regierungen zum wiederholten Mal durchzusetzen
versuchen (zuletzt mit einer ‚Rentenreform’ unter Nicolas Sarcosy),
ist in ...
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1answer
434 views
Why isn't the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights Taught more comprehensively in schools? [closed]
It's hard to protect what you don't know exists. Most Americans, at best, only have superficial knowledge of a few rules and rights from tv shows. How can something so incredibly fundamental and ...
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0answers
57 views
Do voters usually follow the advise regarding the choice in the second round of elections given by a candidate who lost in the first round?
According to this article, Francois Fillon advised his voters to vote for Emmanuel Macron in the second round of 2017 French Presidential elections.
I have seen this way of telling the voters what ...
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4answers
401 views
How is voting by expatriates justified?
Expatriates are people who left their country of citizenship voluntarily for personal reasons (or children of such people). This means that, while they may return, they are currently abroad. Whatever ...
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3answers
1k views
What would a government be called if the citizens elected a ruler, but this ruler got all the power?
Assume there was a fantasy world in which a ruler was elected to become "king". This king election would be completely democratic and fair. Then, when the king is elected, he or she has absolute power ...
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2answers
525 views
Was the Turkish 2017 constitutional referendum held democratically?
From the simple media coverage, I got that the April 2017 constitutional referendum was democratic and it took place without larger skirmishes. However, I realise that the "democracity" of elections ...
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3answers
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Is the US democracy a multi-party system or a dual-party system?
I am from India and whenever we hear about US politics and the US Senate, we always hear about two political parties, Democrats and Republicans. So are these the only two political parties in US? Is ...
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1answer
327 views
Why did Turkey's democracy index only fell by 0.08 points in 2016?
Turkey's democracy index was 5.12 in 2015 and is 5.04 for 2016. Considering the huge wave of repression happening in Turkey following the failed coup in summer 2016, and the restriction of civil ...
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1answer
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Liberal vs. social vs. People's democracy? [closed]
What's the difference between a liberal, social, and People's democracy? I read the phrases in a book but didn't understand them after some searching. Thanks!
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5answers
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Why are stenographers still employed and present within many governmental chambers?
Yesterday a news story broke about a stenographer on the US Senate floor fainting which prompted a brief recess while she was being medically attended to.
Hearing this, I started to wonder why ...
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3answers
289 views
is this definition of the State complete?
The State is an organization intended/designed/created and maintained by a People in order to make known, apply and defend People's Will.
The State ensures the progress in fulfilling the People's ...
4
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3answers
946 views
Can compulsory voting increase the quality of a non-dictatorial republic democracy?
This is somehow a followup of this answer about vote meaningfulness.
According to this article, "Overall, people living in countries with more liberal policies reported higher life satisfaction than ...
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4answers
334 views
Must 'democracy' only refer to a 'state'?
This is actually a twofold question.
One is if the word "democracy" must always refer to a state, in its most formal political definitions, or can other types of social structure be a democracy too? ...
3
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3answers
217 views
Why States in India don't have elections at a same time?
Andhra Pradesh & Telegana had elections in 2014. (In this elections, New Prime Minister was elected)
Tamil Nadu had elections in 2016.
UP, Goa & Bihar election going on now i.e 2017.
Why ...
6
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3answers
392 views
How do secular democratic government deal with religious laws?
Modern democracies guarantee both the freedom of religion and equality before law. This creates a paradox since most of the religions have their own laws, thus creating a system of different laws for ...
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1answer
1k views
What factors lead to a 2 party vs a multi party system
When looking around the world it seems that some countries only have 2 parties that get any power e.g. the USA and then you have other countries that consistently have power shared among multiple ...
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1answer
769 views
Can illiberal democracy be considered a mature democracy?
According to this article illiberal democracies are becoming fashionable these days:
PRINCETON - Nearly two decades ago, the political commentator Fareed
Zakaria wrote a prophetic article called “...
6
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3answers
399 views
Developments leading the Western society to “post truth” / emotions (vs. facts)? [duplicate]
Recent events end elections (U.S.) have shown that people increasingly tend to believe that
Perception is reality.
In other words, emotions seem to have gained a lot more importance during the ...
9
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6answers
3k views
Berkeley Riots: Protest or Infringment of Rights
The violence that preempted the talk of a prominent alt-right speaker on University of California Berkeley's campus has set off a debate over the role of free speech in American society. Did the ...
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2answers
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What are the advantages of the French two-round voting system against a one round alternative?
In regards to the French Presidential election of 2017, what are the advantages of the French two-round voting system against a one round alternative?
If two-round is better than one round, what ...
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2answers
207 views
What would happen if a (democratic) government does not honour a court ruling?
What would happen if a government does not honor a ruling made by a judge?
An example would be US President Trump's Travel Ban, which was recently suspended entirely by a federal judge.
Note: This ...
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5answers
899 views
Is the U.S. still a democracy now that the President lost the popular vote?
According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, Democracy can mean rule of majority.
Is the U.S. still a democracy now that Donald Trump is leading the executive branch while he lost the popular ...
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3answers
543 views
How often have majority parties plummeted in support in one election in democracies?
While voters in democracies usually only incrementally change the party that they support relative to a prior election, every now and then, a party will go from being a leading or majority party, to ...
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2answers
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What mechanisms exist to prevent democracy turning into ochlocracy or tyranny of the majority?
From Wikipedia on democracy:
According to political scientist Larry Diamond, democracy consists of four key elements: (a) A political system for choosing and replacing the government through free ...
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15answers
7k views
What electoral mechanisms might prevent the rise of a demagogue?
I realize that this may be one of the intentions of the US Electoral College system. Its most obvious role is to prevent a candidate of purely local appeal from winning nationally, but another de-...
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2answers
1k views
Are there any countries that require political parties to be democratically organised (and accept members)?
In many countries, members of parliament are elected on the title of political parties. For example, in The Netherlands, 81 parties have registered for the Dutch General Election, 2017. In most of ...
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4answers
12k views
What did Kerry mean with “Israel can either be Jewish or democratic – it cannot be both”?
What did the Secretary of State mean by this dichotomous ultimatum?
Israel can either be Jewish or democratic – it cannot be both.
Why should it be incompatible?
If England, Denmark and Greece ...
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2answers
584 views
Do public referenda overrule political rights, or are they an expression of democracy?
Margaret Thatcher famously opined that "referendums are the tools of dictators and demagogues".
Strangely the position today seems uncannily similar to the days when Edmund Burke penned his ...
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7answers
3k views
Why aren't authoritarian governments overthrown sooner?
On my point of view is pretty simple to overthrow an authoritarian government.
You just have to gather a lot of people in the smallest area possible (where the leader is located). Further actions can ...
4
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2answers
964 views
What would happen if all the Western states imposed embargo on the products from China? [closed]
Donald Trump's protectionism is certainly controversial but to at least some degree, all the Western states lead a similar politics towards the North Korea, Cuba or Russia. China, on the other hand, ...
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5answers
616 views
In a democracy, who takes care of the interests of the losing side?
There are two sides or more to an election - the winning side will get what it wants (hopefully) the losing side will not. What are some of the ways both sides can benefit or do they have to wait 4 ...
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4answers
4k views
Is it possible to rig the American presidential elections?
Donald Trump accused the American establishment of trying to rig the presidential election in favor of Hillary Clinton:
"Remember, we are competing in a rigged election," Trump said at a Wisconsin ...
3
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1answer
287 views
Term for using immigrants to gain long term political advantage
Is there a term that defines the process of a political party or system bringing in immigrants (legal/illegal/refugees) to make them citizens in the future with the expectation that they will support ...
