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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.
List of contents
PrefaceIntroduction: Why Do We Need Institutional Reform?Part I. The Concepts1. Rethinking the Institutions of Representative DemocracyPart II. The People2. Which "People" Are Represented in a Representative Democracy?3. Fact: Quasi-Citizens in the Community Are Represented4. Fact: Quasi-Citizens in Other Jurisdictions Are RepresentedPart III. The Links5. Connecting People and Decision Makers6. Fact: Organizations and Their Alliances Change Rapidly7. Fact: Personal Networks Are ImportantPart IV. The Decision Makers8. Law- and Policy Making9. Fact: Deliberation Is as Important as Bargaining10. Fact: Decisions Are Made in Multiple Venues Conclusion: A ReviewNotesWorks CitedSuggested ReadingsIndex
About the author
Douglas A. Chalmers has written on German and Latin American politics and has coedited several books, including the New Politics of Inequality: New Forms of Popular Representation in Latin America. The former chair of political science and director of the Institute of Latin American Studies at Columbia University, he now teaches in, and speaks on, Columbia's Core Curriculum.
Summary
A noted political scientist revises our understanding of the institutions essential for representative democracy.
