Comparing Direct and Indirect Democracy: The Pros and Cons

Abstract

Definitions of Direct and Indirect Democracies Most government systems in the world can be described as direct and Indirect (representative) democracies. Democracy is a form of governance where the supreme power lies in the hands of the people. A representative democracy entails a system of governance where citizens do not govern directly In this democracy, people vote for its representatives including the members of congress, mays, members of town assemblies, mayors, and state legislatures. Decision-making embraces the majority rule which influences the execution of government activities. In a direct democracy, people directly participate in making government decisions. Members attend public meetings where they vote in for or against the proposed laws. Some of the early democracies that embraced direct democracy include Early Athens, Liechtenstein politics, the United States, and Switzerland (Christmann et al. 134). Some of the duties that people directly participated in this democracy included; making laws, directly electing and dismissing officials, and passing executive decisions. Differences There are notable democracies between direct and indirect democracy exist. Direct democracy is suitable in countries where the population is of small size. People directly make decisions hence a small population heightens decision-making. A representative democracy is suitable where a population is large. A direct democracy sees a whole population of a country form the legislature while an indirect democracy sees the representatives of winning parties form the legislature. In a direct democracy people are the decision-makers while in an indirect democracy, representatives make decisions and policies. Which is more democratic? Representative democracy is more democratic than direct democracy since it encourages participation. It is embraced by a majority of a system of governments in the world including the United States, United Kingdom, and France. Representative democracy is constitutional and the elected representatives draw their power from the constitution. Direct democracy...