Robert Michels’s classic work on the “iron law of oligarchy” can help us to understand why there is so much dissatisfaction with representative democracy.
Across the West, economic, demographic, and cultural shifts have spurred the rise of populists who embrace majoritarianism and popular sovereignty while showing little commitment to constitutionalism and individual liberty.
The advanced democracies are shifting from a reliance on representation toward a mixed repertoire that includes greater reliance on “direct” and “advocacy” democracy, creating new problems that will require new…
