Abstract
Elections are an important component of political democracy and are analysed with great care. Yet, elections and electoral processes are criticised and some question whether this democracy reflects the diversity and quantity of opinions in public policy. In the thirteenth chapter, Vincent Jacquet, Benjamin Biard, Didier Caluwaerts and Min Reuchamps analyse the opinions of voters on this subject. They analyse the preferences for several alternatives, such as deliberative democracy or technocracy. The most educated people, who have the most confidence in politics, are more likely to defend representative democracy. The least advantaged social groups, who are sceptical about the system's ability to respond to needs, are those who demand change without specifying the direction, either towards deliberative democracy or towards technocratic democracy. So there is no preference, but rather a rejection of what exists.
| Translated title of the contribution | Changing democracy? Citizens' attitudes towards current democracy and its alternatives |
|---|---|
| Original language | French |
| Title of host publication | Décrypter l’électeur : Le comportement électoral et les motivations de vote |
| Editors | Kris Deschouwer, Marc Hooghe, Pascal Delwit, Pierre Baudewyns, Stefaan Walgrave |
| Place of Publication | Louvain |
| Publisher | Lannoo Campus |
| Pages | 235-250 |
| Number of pages | 16 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9789401426503 |
| Publication status | Published - 2015 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- CESPOL
- CMAP
- Citizens
- Citoyens
- Direct democracy
- Démocratie directe
- Démocratie représentative
- Representative democracy
- Technocratie