What is democracy Cambridge?
democracy. noun [ C/U ] /dɪˈmɑk·rə·si/ politics & government. the belief in freedom and equality between people, or a system of government based on this belief, in which power is either held by elected representatives or directly by the people themselves.
What is the scientific definition of democracy?
government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system. a state having such a form of government: The United States and Canada are democracies.
What are the major features of democracy?
Some of the major features of a democracy are:
- The final decision making power rests with those elected by the people.
- It must be based on a free and fair election.
- Each adult citizen must have one vote and each vote must have one value.
- It should rule within limits set by constitutional law and citizens’ rights.
What are basic principles of democracy?
Answer Expert Verified. Principles of Democracy: Rule of law, freedom of press, respect of human rights, active political processes & enlightened citizens. Each of these ‘basic’ to democracy, meaning that democracy can’t exist without all of them.
What is the definition of a defective democracy?
Defective democracy. Defective democracies are democracies with certain defects. The concept was proposed by the political scientists Wolfgang Merkel, Hans-Jürgen Puhle and Aurel S. Croissant at the beginning of the 21st century to subtilize the usual distinction of totalitarian, authoritarian, and democratic political systems.
Which is the best definition of a democracy?
A democracy is a system of government in which private citizens exercise their power as citizens of that nation directly by electing officials to the governing body, such as United States House of Representatives .
Is it possible to defend the concept of democracy?
It is now impossible to defend an antiliberal concept of democracy, and there is no longer any doubt that the so-called “people’s democracies” were dictatorships imposed on peoples by political leaders relying on foreign armies. Democracy is a matter of the free choice of government, not the pursuit of “popular” policies.
Are there any problems with the idea of democracy?
Elections in 2016 and 2017—in England, the United States, France, and Germany—have both revealed and exacerbated deep divisions within these societies, raising fundamental questions about the strength and fragility of democracy. In this lesson, we start to help students understand these challenges by examining the idea of democracy itself.
