What ‘s gone wrong with

Democracy?

Tertulia

Manuel Puyana

Germán Arciniegas

Wed. June 4, 2014

What is democracy?

What is democracy?

• a

Greek: demos (meaning “people”), and kratos (meaning “rule”)

Democracy

Key elements to democracy

1

2

3

4

A political system for choosing and replacing the government through free and fair elections

Active participation of the people, as citizens, in politics and civic life - INFORMATION

Protection of the human rights of all citizens

A rule of law, in which the laws and procedures apply equally to all citizens

Is the US a democracy?

REPUBLIC

DEMOCRACY

Direct governmentPeople decide policy matters

directly Rule by the Majority

hall meetings or ballot initiatives

Representativegovernment

Rule by Law (constitution)

The U.S. is a constitution-basedfederal republic

with a strong democratic tradition(CIA World Factbook).

A constitution-based federal republic is actually quite similar to a direct democracy.

"A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance, nor wish it to prevail through the

power of the majority. There is but little virtue in the action of masses of men."

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

Democracy prior to Yr. 2000

• Athens > Eng. Bill of rights > US 1788 + Fr. rights of man > 19th Cent.

• In 1941 only 11 democracies were left!• After 1950:– Germany – India– Decolonization (Africa and Asia)– Autocratic to democracy = Greece, Spain, Argentina,

Brazil, Chile– Collapse of the Soviet Union– in 2000 120 countries = 63% where democracies

Democracy in the 21st Cent.

• 40% of global population• 2013 > 8th year decline of global freedom• Nominal democracies > autocracy (elections

but no rights and institutions)

Freedom score, by country 2013

What do you think are some of the challenges to democracy?

Challenges to democracy?

• a

Riseof

China

Faults in the system

ArabSpring /

Egypt

Russia /Vladimir

Putin

EuropeanUnion challenges

todemocracy

Financial crisis 2007 revealed weaknesses in politics

Gridlock Gerrymandering Second rate

representatives 2013 31% very

satisfied with country direction

Broke the monopoly on progress Doubling living standards 3X faster than US Tight government control Recruit the best people – fresh talent 2013 85% very satisfied with country dir.

Euphoria to despair Morsi – winner takes all Army steps in War in Syria + anarchy in Libya Building institutions is slow!

Autocratic leaders have followed Venezuela, Ukraine, Argentina

Parliament ignored and despised

Technocrats Populist parties

(Le Pen)

Challenges to democracy?

The voters!

Plato’s worry – living from day to day Short term happiness - Debt financed

democracy (keep system afloat, wars, etc.) Brazil...

Distrust in government (EU 50%)Do not want to adapt to austerityGrowing cynicism towards politicsNo trust > no education > apathy Every nation gets the government it

deserves. (Joseph de Maistre)

Democracy Tribulationsin the USA

Gerrymandering

ˈdʒer.iˌmæn.dər.ɪŋ - an occasion when someone in

authority changes the borders of an area in order to increase the number of people within that area who will

vote for a particular party or person.

Elbridge Gerry,Governor of Massachusetts The “Salamander” District

Origin of this Practice

Evolution of Districts

1942 2010

Gerrymandering, where?

Top 5 Gerrymandered Districts: # 5

Top 5 Gerrymandered Districts: # 4

Top 5 Gerrymandered Districts: # 3

Top 5 Gerrymandered Districts: # 2

Top 5 Gerrymandered Districts: # 1

Honorable Mentions

How Does it Work? In Simple Terms…

Blue wins 3Red Wins 0

Blue wins 2Red Wins 1

Blue wins 1Red Wins 2

So, why is gerrymandering bad?

• Encourages manipulation of our elections by:– Allowing incumbent politicians to help partisan

allies, – Hurt political enemies and choose their voters

before the voters choose them. • Means to further political goals by: – Drawing boundaries to protect incumbents – Reduce competition, rather than to ensure equal

voting power and fair representation.

The Result: Less and Less Competition…Count of Congressional Districts

…Underrepresentation

Gridlock

/ˈɡrɪdˌlɒk/- In politics, gridlock or deadlock or political stalemate refers to a situation when there is difficulty of passing laws in a legislature because the votes for and against a proposed law are evenly divided, or in

which two legislative houses, or the executive branch and the legislature are controlled by different political

parties, or otherwise cannot agree.

Gridlock: Polarization?

101 Congress - 1989 113 Congress - 2013

Filibuster

\ˈfi-lə-ˌbəs-tər\ - an effort to prevent action in a legislature (such as the U.S. Senate or House of

Representatives) by making a long speech or series of speeches.

Filibusters: Used More and More…

Number of Motions to End a Filibuster

Just Don’t Let the President Leave a Mark…

Motions to End a Filibuster when a single Party Controlled the Senate and the White House

(*) Does not include Obama’s last 3 Years

Money

I do not have to define this, right?

Trashing Your Opponent is on the Rise

When to go Negative? when taking on an incumbent; when being significantly outspent; when there is irrefutable information

that the opponent has done something wrong;

when the candidate has little name recognition.

Election Turnout: Rhythmic Ups and Downs…

Why a dip every two years??

Every Election Counts! But Voters Do not Agree…

What could be done to foster and preserve democracy?

The end