A popular check on the Commons (3)

(b) The direct-democratic check

A principle driving the encroachment on representative institutions by political parties seems to be that representative democracy breaks down when the voters want to make decisions directly, as they nowadays do in the case of the choice of one or other party to form the government . . . .

As suggested in the previous post, it is plausible that severing the electoral accountability of representatives, by limiting them to single terms of office, would produce a degree of independence from both parties and constituents on the part of the representatives . . . .

The other possible approach is not to elect representatives at all, but to embrace (in this branch of government) some form of direct democracy, resembling that of the ancient city-states. The popular will is ascertained either by a referendum in which the whole electorate can participate, or by establishing a randomly selected political jury as a representative body . . . . CONTINUE