Representative Democracy

The most common form of democracy, in which representatives are elected by the people to make political decisions on their behalf. This system differs from a direct democracy, in which all citizens participate in political decision making. A direct democracy theoretically can only work where there are a small number of citizens, because people need to physically gather in one place and vote. Representatives are elected in a democracy in usually one of two ways: the plurality-majority method or the proportional-representation method.

The plurality-majority method is a “winner takes all” voting system in which the winner is the one who has gained the most votes. This system is common in Great Britain and her former colonies, including the United States. The majority system is usually employed when there are only two candidates running in an election; the winner requiring a majority of the vote. The plurality system is used when there is more than one candidate running for political office; the winner has received the most votes but not necessarily a majority. There are four types of plurality-majority voting systems that are commonly used: (1) single-member district voting, (2) at-large voting, (3) two-round runoff voting, and (4) instant runoff voting.

Proportional representation is an election system, practiced in many European democracies, in which representatives are elected in proportion to the votes [Page 447]received. This system is in contrast to the majority and plurality—winner takes all—voting systems. A goal of proportional representation is to better represent minority groups, especially racial and ethnic minorities, and avoid “wasted” votes. Some disadvantages of proportional representation include legislative gridlock, too much power allotted to small parties, and less resistance to extremism. For more information, see Douglas (2000).