the people cannot be expected to have the time or interest to make important and regular decisions
representatives can educate the public on political issues
representatives ensure the interests of all sections of society (including minorities) are taken into account, and can be held accountable for their decisions
representatives are able to ‘aggregate’ the differing demands of people into a more coherent and politically logical programme
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Representative democracy
(also called indirect democracy) – is where citizens choose others to represent them, making important decisions on their behalf.
In the UK, there is a system of representative democracy called "liberal democracy" – in which the people vote for a government through regular elections with secret ballots and a choice of candidates.
Government is accountable to the people, and has its power limited in some way, in part by a free press and the individual rights of the people.
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Disadvantages of representative democracy
representatives may distort peoples’ demands to suit their political preferences
representatives may not make make themselves accountable enough between elections and can only be removed by elections if they lose the respect of the people
the electoral mandate of representatives is flawed, as voters have to accept or reject a whole manifesto, not being able to make clear which parts of it they oppose, and there is more information in this day and age for people to be able to make better decisions
representatives also have to decide whether to be ‘delegates’ for their constituents, merely putting forward their view, or using their best judgement to ‘represent’ their constituents (a concept called ‘Burkean representation’)
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Direct democracy
People vote 'yes' or 'no' on specific questions.
No modern country makes every decision using direct democracy. This would be too difficult with big populations.
Elements of direct democracy are used increasingly in the UK, including referendums and petitions.
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Advantages of direct democracy
people can participate4 directly in the decision-making process
the wishes of the people cannot be ignored by their elected representatives or the government
people can be motivated to become well-informed about political issues
decisions have the direct authority of the people - this gives them greater legitimacy.
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Disadvantages of direct democracy
the public may not fully understand the question they are voting on - elected representatives might be better placed to analyse and evaluate the issue
the majority of people may vote for something that undermines the rights of a minority group (tyranny of the majority)
people may vote for emotional or populist short-term reasons, rather than taking a more considered view
holding so many votes is slow and expensive, particularly in countries with large populations
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