Reforming Democracies
Six Facts About Politics That Demand a New Agenda
1st Edition
Published on 31. August 2015
192 pages
978-0-231-53105-4 (ISBN)
Description
Even well-established democracies need reform, and any successful effort to reform democracies must look beyond conventional institutions-elections, political parties, special interests, legislatures and their relations with chief executives-to do so.
Expanding a traditional vision of the institutions of representative democracy, Douglas A. Chalmers examines six aspects of political practice relating to the people being represented, the structure of those who make law and policy, and the links between those structures and the people. Chalmers concludes with a discussion of where successful reform needs to take place: we must pay attention to a democratic ordering of the constant reconfiguration of decision making patterns; we must recognize the crucial role of information in deliberation; and we must incorporate noncitizens and foreigners into the political system, even when they are not the principal beneficiaries.
Expanding a traditional vision of the institutions of representative democracy, Douglas A. Chalmers examines six aspects of political practice relating to the people being represented, the structure of those who make law and policy, and the links between those structures and the people. Chalmers concludes with a discussion of where successful reform needs to take place: we must pay attention to a democratic ordering of the constant reconfiguration of decision making patterns; we must recognize the crucial role of information in deliberation; and we must incorporate noncitizens and foreigners into the political system, even when they are not the principal beneficiaries.
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Douglas A. Chalmers has written articles and books on German and Latin American politics and is coeditor of The New Politics of Inequality in Latin America: Rethinking Participation and Representation. The former chair of the Department of Political Science and director of the Institute of Latin American Studies at Columbia University, he now teaches in Columbia's Core Curriculum and leads organizations devoted to making retirement the new phase of faculty professional life.
Content
Preface
Introduction: Why Do We Need Institutional Reform?
Part I. The Concepts
1. Rethinking the Institutions of Representative Democracy
Part II. The People
2. Which "People" Are Represented in a Representative Democracy?
3. Quasi-Citizens in the Community Are Represented
4. Quasi-Citizens in Other Jurisdictions Are Represented
Part III. The Links
5. Connecting People and Decision Makers
6. Organizations and Their Alliances Change Rapidly
7. Personal Networks Are Important
Part IV. The Decision Makers
8. Law- and Policy Making
9. Deliberation Is as Important as Bargaining
10. Decisions Are Made in Multiple Venues
Conclusion: A Review
Notes
Works Cited
Suggested Readings
Index
Introduction: Why Do We Need Institutional Reform?
Part I. The Concepts
1. Rethinking the Institutions of Representative Democracy
Part II. The People
2. Which "People" Are Represented in a Representative Democracy?
3. Quasi-Citizens in the Community Are Represented
4. Quasi-Citizens in Other Jurisdictions Are Represented
Part III. The Links
5. Connecting People and Decision Makers
6. Organizations and Their Alliances Change Rapidly
7. Personal Networks Are Important
Part IV. The Decision Makers
8. Law- and Policy Making
9. Deliberation Is as Important as Bargaining
10. Decisions Are Made in Multiple Venues
Conclusion: A Review
Notes
Works Cited
Suggested Readings
Index
