Democracy in Crisis?

This volume explores the state of representative democracy on the global stage. It does this against the backdrop of crises such as the USA Capitol attack on January 6, 2021, recent refusals to accept election results in various countries, and recent attempts to restrict the voting franchise, as well as longer-term trends such as the rise of populism and declining trust in political elites. The first substantive chapter examines representative democracy in theory, history and practice today. Taking the representative model as their point of departure, the subsequent chapters explore a range of themes in relation to this model.The contributions include timely reappraisals of democracy in countries, such as the United Kingdom and United States, with old, well-established democratic structures as well as analyses of the state of democracy in regions, such as Africa, Asia and South America, where democracy has had a more chequered history. Across all of its chapters, the book invites readers to rethink fundamental questions about representative democracy: Why is it valuable? How should it be organized? Do steps need to be taken to strengthen representative democracy, and if so, what are those steps? The volume''s target audience - politicians, public servants and interested members of the public - will be provided with arguments and evidence to form their own views at a time when the ideals and practices of representative democracy are being challenged around the world, and new ideas and initiatives to revitalise it are being debated and implemented.>

Préface
Explores the current state of representative democracy on the global stage.

Auteur

DJ Galligan is Emeritus Professor of Socio-Legal Studies, University of Oxford, UK.
Zim Nwokora is Senior Lecturer in Politics & Policy Studies at Deakin University, Australia.
Richard Clary is Lecturer in Law, Harvard Law School, USA.

Texte du rabat

Explores the current state of representative democracy on the global stage.

Contenu

Introduction: Debating the Crisis of Representative Democracy, Richard W Clary (Harvard University, USA) and Zim Nwokora (Deakin University, Australia)

1. Is Representative Democracy in Crisis? Richard W Clary (Harvard University, USA)
   

2. Questioning the Traditional Model of Representative Democracy, DJ Galligan (University of Oxford, UK)

3. The Challenge of Representative Democracy in Africa, Zim Nwokora (Deakin University, Australia)

4. India in Crisis: Hindu Nationalism and the Majoritarian State, Angana Chatterji (University of California, Berkeley, USA)

5. Representative Democratic Crisis in South America, Pedro Fortes (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

6. Leadership in Democratic Systems
   (a) Introduction, DJ Galligan (University Oxford, UK)
   (b) Assessing Leadership in Democratic Practice, Fui Tsikata (Reindorf Chambers, Ghana)
   (c) The Threat of the Remaking of the Sovereign: When Rulers Choose the People, Bogdan Iancu (University of Bucharest, Romania)
   (d) Democratic Crisis in Israel, Iris Canor (University of Zefat, Israel)
   (e) Leadership versus Democracy in Constitutional Thought, Vlad Perju (Boston College, USA)

7. Institutions of Government and Their Role in Democracy
   (a) Introduction, Richard W Clary (Harvard University, USA)
   (b) Institutions of Government and Their Role in Democracy, Paul Craig (University Oxford, UK)
   (c) Dominance of the Executive, Sionaidh Douglas-Scott (Queen Mary, UK)
   (d) The Dangers of Meritocratic Depoliticization, Ruzha Smilova (Sofia, Bulgaria)
   (e) The Institutions of Government and Their Role in Democracy, Frank Vibert (LSE, UK)

8: Electoral Systems and Political Parties
(a) Introduction, Daniel Smilov (Sofia, Bulgaria)
(b) The Politics of Internet Shutdowns, Nicole Stremlau (University of Oxford, UK)
(c) Crisis of Representative Democracy: Consequences, Causes and Remedies, Fernando Casal Bertoa (University of Nottingham, UK)
(d) Challenging the 'Crisis of Democracy' Narrative, Jurij Toplak (Fordham University, USA)

9: Representative Democracy Threatened from Within, the Honourable Malcolm Turnbull (Australia)

Conclusion, DJ Galligan (University of Oxford, UK)