Understanding Democracy: Meanings and Models
Item 6. Democracy
The Meanings of Democracy
Democracy is today one of the few positive words that exist in the political vocabulary. However, this positive perception is very recent. It’s hard to find widespread sympathy for democracy well into the nineteenth century. In the entire history of political theory, it is difficult to find arguments explicitly for democracy until the struggle for universal suffrage appeared during the nineteenth century and developed in the twentieth. Democracy was often called into question until the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of communism, which turned liberal democratic regimes into universally legitimate systems.
Samuel Huntington described three waves of democratization:
- The first from 1828 to 1926.
- The second from 1943 to 1964.
- The third began in 1974 and still seems to be ongoing.
Defining democracy is difficult due to the multitude of political meanings associated with it. The gradual, long-term attraction of democracy led to its use as a mechanism to legitimize even undemocratic regimes. This polysemy is due to the fact that the very concept of democracy is unclear and difficult to pinpoint. In democratic theory, there are two main ways to address the problem of the meaning of democracy: empirical and normative.
- Empirical analysis examines democracy as it manifests in a society.
- Normative analysis considers the problem of establishing the principles and ideals to which a democracy should conform to deserve the name. It analyzes democracy as a way of life, particularly focusing on the ideal of self-governing human communities.
It is true that empirical and normative dimensions constantly intermingle in every theory about democracy. Trying to define *what democracy is* and trying to define *what democracy should be* are related, but distinct, endeavors. Any definition of democracy will have an intersection of these two approaches. It is usual to find in the literature analyses that define democracy as:
- A regime in which citizens govern themselves and are provided with all the resources, rights, and institutions needed to do so.
- A political regime in which there is accountability of the governed to the governors.
- A system defined by pluralism, free competition between elites, and accountability.
- A system that may not work to elect the best leaders, but can drive out the worst with minimal human and social costs.
The existence of this diversity of approaches and definitions is why we should establish a typology that allows us to navigate this diversity.
Models of Democracy
Model 1: Liberal-Protector
The basic principle of the liberal model is to define democracy as a political system that allows the protection of every citizen against the actions of other individuals and, collectively, against state action. This would ensure maximum freedom for each individual. The individual is the basis of the social contract that establishes the rules of coexistence or justice. The utility of individuals, or their aggregation, is the foundation of the political order.
The liberal model is associated with institutions such as:
- Civil rights.
- The division of powers.
- Territorial divisions of power.