Disadvantages Of Majoritarian Democracy

Democracy is a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, and is one with representative institutions and a rule of law.

Democracy is known as a system of government when all eligible people of a state can voice their own opinions as well as elect representatives. Democracy is not once mentioned in The Declaration of Independence. Pros of a democracy are, its by the people and for the people. Democracy is meant for everybody to be eligible to vote and they are able to vote. The people are also able to participate in what they think, feel , and voice about the political, social, and economic issues that are presented to them. It's in the people's best interest not just the governments. The goal is to find solutions with decision-makers best interest. The main goal is to is find solutions that are best for the people and regulate conflicts between states and government.  A democracy imposes equality, the people's votes carry the same weight, which makes all individuals to be heard and make them feel as if their opinion is important. Other than in elections of the state a citizens

Totalitarianism is a form of government in which citizens of the totalitarian nation have little or no freedoms and the needs of the nation are placed above the needs of individuals. The rulers of these nations use a variety of techniques to retain control of their nations, some of which are violent and unethical. Totalitarian governments mainly began to develop in Italy, Germany, and the Soviet Union during the years after World War I and were one of the main causes of World War II.

The democratic deficit is a theory developed by scholars in order to illustrate that the European Union and its institutional bodies suffer from a lack of democracy (Wincott, 1998, p. 414). However, there are many definitions of the democratic deficit (Chryssochoou, 2000; Justice, 1996; Warleigh, 2003; Weiler, Haltern & Mayer, 1995) depending on the views and approaches of each scholar. Joseph Weiler's ‘standard version' of the democratic deficit is one of the most common definitions and it is a set of widely-used arguments by academics, scholars and the media (Weiler et al., 1995, cited by Follesdal & Hix, 2005, p. 4). It consists of five claims that explain why the EU can be called undemocratic and they are the following: a) there is an

Does the EU suffer from a democratic deficit? If so, can it be solved by conferring greater powers on the European parliament?

In the reading “ Patterns of democracy” Lijphart states there are five different dimensions of the majoritarian-consensus typology which are based not only on characteristics of the party system, electoral system and government coalitions, but on federal vs. unitary traits as well. The first characteristic of Lijphart’s five dimensions is closely related with the majoritarian system in that it consists of a one party cabinet concentration of power versus a multiparty sharing

Nowadays democracy is sometimes assumed like pregnancy, in other words meaning that the democracy should be either present or not. However, there could be more or less democracy. In fact, much depends on what one believes should be in the scope of its definition. Furthermore, democracy is not easy to define as its boundaries are unclear. According to Oxford dictionary, democracy is a system of government in which individuals are involved in the decision-making process about the affairs of the state by means of voting and electing representatives to a parliament. This essay shall start by looking into the routes of democracy in the European Union, then discuss the notion of a

In this assignment I will be assessing the democratic accountability of the European Union. I will begin by briefly describing the institutions, their functions, compositions and discuss how they work as check and balance system to ensure democratic accountability further to look on to how laws are made and what they are In order to establish whether or not the EU is in fact answerable to its citizens.

According to Chapter 9 of Patterns of Democracy by Arend Lijphart titled Interest Groups: Pluralism versus corporatism, the author sought to explain the fifth and last difference between majoritarian and consensus democracy in terms of interest groups. Majoritarian democracies tend to have pluralism tendencies insofar as interest groups while consensus democracies tend to have corporatism tendency. Below, the chapter’s detailed analysis of the subject matter will be extensively be judged. The strength, the weaknesses and suggestions on how those weaknesses could have been prevented will be discussed.

The European Union (EU) is fundamentally democratic and is evident through its institutions, however, the current democratic electoral structure is of great concern. The EU is a new type of political system, often referred to as a sui generis, implying its uniqueness as there exists and a non comparable political body. The EU can neither regarded as a ‘state’ nor as an ‘international institution’ as it combines supranational as well as intergovernmental characteristics (Hix, 1999, p7). In this regard it has developed its own understandings of what democracy is. It is evident that the development of and spread of democracy is a central concept and foundation to all politics within the EU, and remains focuses on makings its governing

It would seem to most observers France would fit into Robert Dahl's definition of a pluralist democracy. You have multiple power centers competing and open elections for the

Lijphart is known for his creation of the concept of the two models of democracy; Majoritarian and Consensual. Majoritarian or Westminster democracy, is defined by ten characteristics. First, it has a concentration of executive power, basically, it has a single party majority cabinet or minimum winning coalitions. Second, the executive dominates the legislature, an example is in some systems ninety per cent of the passed legislature is proposed by the executive and vise versa. Third, it consists of a two-party system, which means that there are usually only two true parties that are potential rulers. Fourth, is the majoritarian or disproportional electoral system; a system that usually has disproportionate outcomes. Fifth, pluralist interest groups thrive in these systems; group openly support and compete for influence. Sixth, this system is run in a unitary and centralized government. Seventh, Unicameralism is concept to this system. Eighth, having a flexible and easily amended constitution is another point showing you are in a majoritarian system. Ninth, having a sovereign legislature that is free of judicial review. And lastly, having a central bank that is dependent on the executive. These ten characteristics makes up a majoritarian system. France is an example of a country that follows some of Lijphart’s majoritarian democracy model.

Democracy is a form of government in which all eligible citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Democracy allows eligible citizens to participate equally—either directly or through elected representatives—in the proposal, development, and creation of laws. It encompasses social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the free and equal practice of political self-determination.

The Europe of the future, if it should ever emerge, will be one of the mass identification and loyalty to the European ideal, alongside or even in place of national allegiances and identities, such that large numbers of the inhabitants of the European continent will not only consider themselves to be first and foremost ‘Europeans’ but will be prepared to make sacrifices for that ideal. [7]

Nowadays, European Union is not a state; it can be defined as an association of corporate bodies, including the part states and the European Institutions .It has built up another sort of political framework that goes past the traditional intergovernmentalism and has considerable components of supra-nationality. Before it was made, it was almost impossible to develop a political arrangement of majority rule administration separated from the institutionalized country state model.The improvement of the Union has