Question

What is an example of direct democracy?

Answer 1

Direct Democracy is simply the concept of a democracy in which voters are able to directly impact specific issues and policies, rather than voting to give a representative or party, a mandate to decide upon policies and issues. One type of direct democracy is the referendum. In British Politics, referendums have only existed for forty years, although they have become more frequent more recently. British referendums are mostly based around consitutional issues, such as the 2016 Brexit Referendum, or the 2011 Alternative Vote Referendum. Switzerland is a more direct democracy than the UK, for instance they had a referendum in 2009 on the building of new Minarets. A true and perfect direct democracy would have votes on all legislative matters, in the model of Ancient Athens, although in a modern democracy this would be unlikely to work. 

A more direct democracy enables more people to directly impact politics. This can also be achieved through increasing political participation. One way to do this would be to make voting compulsory, although many people see ethical and practical issues with this. Other ways to achieve greater political participation are through lowering the voting age and compulsory political education for young people. It is thought that these measures lead to a more engaged political populace and therefore a more efficient democracy.