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Representative democracy in the United States is constitutional because it is both limited and empowered by the supreme law, the Constitution, for the ultimate purpose of protecting equally the rights of all the people. The periodic election by the people of their representatives in government is conducted according to the Constitution and the ...
- Authority
Authority in a democracy, which is based on the consent of...
- Federalism
The idea of modern federalism was invented by the framers of...
- Separation of Powers
The U.S. Constitution is the original functional model for...
- Equality
No one is above or beyond the reach of the law, and no one...
- Republicanism
Republicanism - Democracy, Representative and Constitutional...
- Elections
Elections - Democracy, Representative and Constitutional –...
- Pluralism
One indicator of pluralism in a democracy is a variety of...
- Liberalism
Liberalism - Democracy, Representative and Constitutional –...
- Republic
Unlike most peoples of the world in the late 18th century,...
- Authority
Americans' trust in the federal government has been declining, though their trust in state government has remained relatively consistant. California's citizens vote to recall their governor. Congress votes to impeach an unpopular president. A major bill supported by the majority of citizens passes a state legislature.
People also ask
What is a representative and constitutional democracy?
Is the US government a representative democracy?
Is democracy constitutional?
What are examples of representative and constitutional democracy?
- Overview
- Key documents to know
- Important takeaways
- Review questions
When creating the Constitution, one of the major questions facing the Framers was how to create a strong central government with the power to rule over its citizens without infringing upon citizens’ individual liberties. Foundational documents like the US Constitution, Federalist No. 10, and Brutus No. 1 illustrate the debate over this balance.
Federalist No. 10 — An essay written by James Madison, in which he argued that a strong representative government would be able to control the effects of factions.
Brutus No. 1 — An Anti-Federalist essay which argued against a strong central government based on the belief that it would not be able to meet the needs of all US citizens.
Participatory democracy in action: Participatory democracy (sometimes called direct democracy) is the idea that everyone should be, and can be, involved in politics. It emphasizes broad participation in politics and encourages ordinary people —not just a small subset of the population— to be responsible for political decisions.
An example of participatory democracy in the United States today is the use of referenda in some states. Referenda allow citizens to have a direct vote on a particular law. A referendum is an example of participatory democracy because the citizens themselves (not their government representatives) are the ones who decide whether to enact that law.
Pluralist democracy in action: Pluralist democracy is the idea that policymaking is open to lots of groups who have different interests. Each of these groups has the potential to influence policymaking, but no one group dominates all political decisions.
An example of pluralist democracy in the United States today is the participation of interest groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Global Green USA. Both of these groups raise funds for candidates, promote candidates, and strive to influence current members of Congress on political decisions. Interest groups are an example of pluralist democracy because citizens join groups to influence policymakers, rather than having direct access to political decisions.
Elite democracy in action: An elite democracy is one in which a small subset of citizens makes political decisions. Those who make policy are usually wealthier and more educated than the average citizen. In an elite democracy, those who are in power are highly qualified to make political decisions.
An example of elite democracy today is the Electoral College. The Electoral College is used in presidential elections and determines the outcome of most elections. Under this system, a candidate might win the popular vote in an election (meaning more citizens voted to elect them than their opponent), but lose the electoral vote, and thus the presidency. The Electoral College is intended to provide a check on voters and act as a safeguard in case the voters make an unwise decision.
Which model of democracy does Federalist No. 10 describe? How do you know?
Which model of democracy does Brutus No. 1 describe? How do you know?
Based on what you've learned, construct an argument for which type of democracy you think creates the most stable form of government that is run by the people.
[Notes and attributions]
The government of the United States can best be described as a republic, or representative democracy. A democracy is a government in which political power —influence over institutions, leaders, and policies—rests in the hands of the people. In a representative democracy, however, the citizens do not govern directly. Instead, they elect ...
Key points. The US government is based on ideas of limited government, including natural rights, popular sovereignty, republicanism, and social contract. Limited government is the belief that the government should have certain restrictions in order to protect the individual rights and civil liberties of citizens.
- What are the terms conservative, liberal and independent about?Conservative, Liberal and independent are referring to a person's political orientation. To give some popular examples, Republicans are conservativ...
- One of the biggest arguments today is how much power the federal government should have. Should the ...You can repeal the Second Amendment, but it would't change anything. The right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental, unalienable right not confer...
- How to prevent tyranny of the majority?By signing the Declaration of Independence.
- I love that the United States of America is the country I was born in. I think that the values that ...No, the government isn't doing the best job, and it certainly shows favoritism to the majority, but the good thing about the U.S. is that the peopl...
- are there any other parties in the united states, or is it just democrats and republicans?There are about 5 main parties, Republican and Democrats being the two major parties.
- So the thing is, the Founding Fathers wanted to create a government where all were equal, but they o...There were those that saw this, and some women and minorities tried to get the founding fathers to allow voting for all. For example, Abigail Adams...
- How was the government created in the first place?The government was created, in essence, by the Articles of Confederation and later, the Constitution.
Representative democracy is a government system that creates an extra stage between public votes and law creation. Instead of voting for laws, citizens elect officials to craft, debate, and sign laws. The idea is that citizens trust those elected politicians to carry out the will of those that elected them.
Descriptive representation is the level at which Congress reflects the nation’s constituents in terms of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and socioeconomic status. Collective representation is the extent to which the institutional body of Congress represents the population as a whole.
