Types of Democracy

Direct Democracy

• Also known as pure democracy
• Citizens make decisions directly through votes on laws and policies
• Examples: Ancient Athens, Swiss cantons

Representative Democracy

• Citizens elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf
• Representatives are accountable to the people who elected them
• Examples: United States, United Kingdom

Constitutional Democracy

• A system of government that limits power through a constitution or bill of rights
• Protects individual rights and prevents abuse of power
• Examples: United States, Germany

Participatory Democracy

• Emphasizes citizen participation and involvement in decision-making
• Encourages active citizen engagement and deliberation
• Examples: Porto Alegre's participatory budgeting, Icelandic crowdsourced constitution

Deliberative Democracy

• Focuses on informed and reflective citizen participation
• Citizens engage in public deliberation and discussion to reach collective decisions
• Examples: Citizens' juries, deliberative polling

Liquid Democracy

• A hybrid of direct and representative democracy
• Citizens can delegate their votes to trusted representatives or vote directly
• Examples: Online platforms, such as LiquidFeedback

Illiberal Democracy

• A system that combines democratic elections with authoritarian practices
• Limits individual rights and freedoms
• Examples: Hungary, Turkey

Direct Democracy

• Citizens have the power to make decisions directly through votes on laws and policies
• This system is also known as pure democracy
• Ancient Athens and Swiss cantons are examples of direct democracy in practice

Representative Democracy

• Citizens elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf
• Representatives are accountable to the people who elected them
• The United States and United Kingdom are examples of countries that use representative democracy

Constitutional Democracy

• A system of government that limits power through a constitution or bill of rights
• Protects individual rights and prevents abuse of power
• The United States and Germany are examples of constitutional democracies

Participatory Democracy

• Encourages active citizen engagement and deliberation in decision-making
• Emphasizes citizen participation and involvement in the democratic process
• Porto Alegre's participatory budgeting and Iceland's crowdsourced constitution are examples of participatory democracy in action

Deliberative Democracy

• Focuses on informed and reflective citizen participation in decision-making
• Citizens engage in public deliberation and discussion to reach collective decisions
• Citizens' juries and deliberative polling are examples of deliberative democracy

Liquid Democracy

• A hybrid of direct and representative democracy
• Citizens can delegate their votes to trusted representatives or vote directly
• Online platforms, such as LiquidFeedback, are examples of liquid democracy in practice

Illiberal Democracy

• Combines democratic elections with authoritarian practices
• Limits individual rights and freedoms
• Hungary and Turkey are examples of illiberal democracies