Their government was mostly consisting of corrupt bureaucrats and ineffective economic policies that mostly helped the rich stay rich and the poor stay poor. In between them was a king who tried to implement some more liberal policies for the people, but Alexander III mostly reversed them all because he didn't want his autocracy to be challenged.<span />
He believed that ordinary people (not just the wealthy) should participate in American political life. They had the right to vote and hold political office. Voters could choose presidential candidates.