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Introduction (Topics of this seminar: (8 reasons as to why reform happened…

- - - - According to the authors, contemporary democracies face popular pressures to:
        
        increase transparency of governance
        
        grant more access
        
        make government more accountable
      - This is amplified by opinions of experts and government officials
      - Yet according to the authors, this not like some proponents say 'the most fundamental democratic transformation since the beginnings of mass democracy". -> Cycles of reform are a recurring theme, pressures for change in one direction often wane as new problems and possibilities arise
    - - 1. Two examples of waves of democratic reform
        
        Early twentieth century: populist movement in the US and EU -> extensive electoral & governing-process reforms + introduction new forms of direct democracy -> making western democracies more democratic
        
        emerged in the last third of the twentieth century: more acces to citizen interest groups & other lpublic lobbying organizations
        
        expanded mass media & scrutiny of government
        
        increased expectations of citizens who trust less
      - 2. Three modes of democracy that describe the last reform
        
        Direct democracy: reform to this mode calls for net types that bypass (or complement) representative democracy
        
        most important points on direct
        
        most important means of direct democracy-> initiatives and referenda
        
        allow citizens to decide on goverment policy without mediating influence of representation
        
        changes in both attitude and formal rules have brought about a greater reliance on mechanisms of direct democracy
        
        referendum has won new legitimacy as a basis for national decision making
        
        advocacy democracy: which expands the means of political participation either directly or through surrogates (e.g. public interest groups) while final decisions are still made by elites
        
        most important points on advocacy
        
        citizens or public interest groups interact directly with governments and even participate directly in the policy formation process-> altough actual decisions are made by officials
        
        overal expansion is undeniable-> with a move away from trustee to the delegate model
        
        nonconventional forms of political action (demonstrations and protests) have also increased
        
        Representative democracy: reform to this mode seek to improve electoral processes
        
        most important points on representative:
        
        altough political access saw a slight decrease-> amount of voting is up and suffrage includes younger voters (18 to 20)
        
        number of parties increased as does the transparency
        
        altough electoral turnout has decreased-> general mechanism of repr. democracy has maintained and slightly increased citizens access and influence
    - - 1. 5 criteria of Dahl
        
        enlightened understanding: within reasonable limits, citizens must have equal and effective opportunities to learn about relevant policy alternatives and their likely consequences
        
        control of the agenda: citizens must have the opportunities to decide which matters are placed on the public agenda and how
        
        political equality: when decisions about policy are made, every citizen must have an equal and effective opportunity to participate
        
        effective participation: before a policy is adopted, all citizens must have equal and effective opportunities for making their views known to other citizens
        
        inclusion: with minimal exeptions, all permanent adult residents must have full rights to citizenship
        
        2. scores of the three modes of democracy on criteria
        
        direct democracy
        
        political equality-> one person, one vote-> high turnout maximies equality (but problems of low turnout, and equality-> minority can make crucial decisions affecting public welfare)
        
        enlightened understanding-> problems of greater information and higher decisions making costs
        
        inclusion-> universal suffrage fulfills this criteria
        
        control of political agenda-> citizens and groups control the locus and focus of activity
        
        effective participation-> direct access avoids mediated participation
        
        advocacy democracy
        
        political equality-> equal opportunity (problems of very unequal use)
        
        enlightened understanding-> increased public assess to info (problems of greater info and decision making costs on citizens
        
        inclusion-> equal citizen access (problems of access to non-electoral arenas)
        
        control of political agenda-> citizens and groups control the locus and focus of activity
        
        effective participation-> direct access voids mediated participation
        
        representative democracy
        
        enlightened understanding-> problems of information access, voter decision process-> expansion of electoral marketplace empowers but makes it hard to make meaningful judgement
        
        control of political agenda-> generally better-> still control of campaign debate, selecting candidates
        
        political equality-> one person, one vote-> high turnout maximies equality (but problems of low turnout, campaign financing issues)-> full political equality is probably not fully attainable , equality of access and ussage are becoming adopted
        
        effective participation-> principal agent problems-> fair elections, responsible party-government
        
        inclusion-> universal suffrage fulfills this criteria