Author: Laurence Morel Publisher: Routledge ISBN: 1351360728 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 530
Book Description
Over the last 30 years referendums have played an increasingly important role in determining government policy. Recent high profile referendums in Scotland, Catalonia and Ukraine have continued the movement towards independence referendums following decolonization and the end of the Cold War. The Greek bailout referendum and Britain’s vote on membership of the EU reflect a tradition of European states giving their people a direct say in the transfer of sovereign powers to the European Union seen through the ratification of key treaties such as Maastricht, Amsterdam, Nice and Lisbon. This Routledge Handbook covers key aspects and issues of direct democracy and referendums throughout the world including: •their history; •when, why, where, how and on which issues referendums are held; •why some referendums are more democratic than others; •how referendums are won; •whether they produce good policies; •if referendums increase participation and improve the quality of representative democracies; •do referendums increase trust in democracy and the political actors; •the impact of new technology on the possibilities, methods and frequency of direct public political participation; •how they should be regulated. Covering other related areas such as recall, citizen juries and random selection, this compendium is an indispensable guide to referendums and the workings of modern democracy.
Author: Maija Setälä Publisher: Routledge ISBN: 1135215057 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 310
Book Description
This volume analyses how the use of referendums affects the central functions and characteristics of representative democracy. It provides a balanced account of the interaction between referendums and representative institutions and actors, seeking to evaluate whether referendums supplement or undermine representative democracy. Considering both normative and empirical questions, the volume also examines the particular circumstances under which referendums strengthen or weaken representative democracy. Providing a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches used in the study of referendums, this book is divided into three sections: Referendums and the Models of Democracy, The Demand of Referendums: Party Ideologies and Strategies, and Referendum Campaigns and Voter Behaviour. It features case studies on Ireland, Israel, Canada, California, Italy, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, the Nordic Countries, the Netherlands, Spain and the EU Constitutional Treaty. In addition to system-level evaluations of referendums, studies on the ideological attitudes of political actors and strategic use of referendums, the volume also provides analyses of referendum campaigns and voters’ choices in referendums. Covering referendums on European integration, the volume also demonstrates how supra-national governance gives rise to the demand of referendums. This volume will be of interest to students and scholars of political science, political theory, comparative politics, and European studies.
Author: Justin Fisher Publisher: Routledge ISBN: 1317494806 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 786
Book Description
The study of elections, voting behavior and public opinion are arguably among the most prominent and intensively researched sub-fields within Political Science. It is an evolving sub-field, both in terms of theoretical focus and in particular, technical developments and has made a considerable impact on popular understanding of the core components of liberal democracies in terms of electoral systems and outcomes, changes in public opinion and the aggregation of interests. This handbook details the key developments and state of the art research across elections, voting behavior and the public opinion by providing both an advanced overview of each core area and engaging in debate about the relative merits of differing approaches in a comprehensive and accessible way. Bringing geographical scope and depth, with comparative chapters that draw on material from across the globe, it will be a key reference point both for advanced level students and researchers developing knowledge and producing new material in these sub-fields and beyond. The Routledge Handbook of Elections, Voting Behavior and Public Opinion is an authoritative and key reference text for students, academics and researchers engaged in the study of electoral research, public opinion and voting behavior.
Author: John G. Matsusaka Publisher: Princeton University Press ISBN: 0691199744 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 312
Book Description
How referendums can diffuse populist tensions by putting power back into the hands of the people Propelled by the belief that government has slipped out of the hands of ordinary citizens, a surging wave of populism is destabilizing democracies around the world. As John Matsusaka reveals in Let the People Rule, this belief is based in fact. Over the past century, while democratic governments have become more efficient, they have also become more disconnected from the people they purport to represent. The solution Matsusaka advances is familiar but surprisingly underused: direct democracy, in the form of referendums. While this might seem like a dangerous idea post-Brexit, there is a great deal of evidence that, with careful design and thoughtful implementation, referendums can help bridge the growing gulf between the government and the people. Drawing on examples from around the world, Matsusaka shows how direct democracy can bring policies back in line with the will of the people (and provide other benefits, like curbing corruption). Taking lessons from failed processes like Brexit, he also describes what issues are best suited to referendums and how they should be designed, and he tackles questions that have long vexed direct democracy: can voters be trusted to choose reasonable policies, and can minority rights survive majority decisions? The result is one of the most comprehensive examinations of direct democracy to date—coupled with concrete, nonpartisan proposals for how countries can make the most of the powerful tools that referendums offer. With a crisis of representation hobbling democracies across the globe, Let the People Rule offers important new ideas about the crucial role the referendum can play in the future of government.
Author: Leah Trueblood Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing ISBN: 1509940812 Category : Law Languages : en Pages : 270
Book Description
In referendums on fundamental constitutional issues, do the people come together to make decisions instead of representatives? This book argues no. It offers an alternative theory of referendums whereby they are one of many ordinary ways that voters give direction to their representatives. In this way, the book argues that referendums are better understood as exercises in representative democracy. The book challenges the current treatment of referendums in processes of constitutional change both in the UK and around the world. It argues that referendums have been used under the banner of popular sovereignty in a way that undermines representative institutions. This book makes the case for the use of referendums stronger by showing how they can support, rather than undermine, institutions of representative democracy. Understanding referendums as exercises in representative democracy has broader implications for constitutional democracy as well. Rather than see the power to constitute constitutions as something that happens occasionally in exceptional moments through referendums, this book argues instead that voters constantly have the power to constitute and reconstitute their constitutions.
Author: Julie Smith Publisher: Springer Nature ISBN: 3030558037 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 736
Book Description
This handbook provides an empirically rich analysis of referendums in Europe from the end of the Second World War to the present. It addresses a range of perennial theoretical and legal questions that face policy-makers when they offer citizens the chance to take or influence decisions by referendum, not least whether to accept the ‘will of the people’. Taking a multi-disciplinary approach, drawing on historical, philosophical and political science perspectives, the book includes a contextual section on the history of referendums, the theoretical questions underpinning their use, and on constitutional and legal questions about the use of referendums. The empirical sections are divided into those referendums that focus on domestic issues, such as constitutional matters or questions of social policy, and those related to the European Union, including membership referendums and treaty ratification.
Author: Jeffrey Haynes Publisher: Routledge ISBN: 1136513329 Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 666
Book Description
This exciting new handbook provides a global overview of the process of democratization, offering chapter by chapter discussion at both the country and regional levels and examining the interaction between the domestic and external factors that affect the progression of countries from authoritarian to democratic rule. Bringing together 29 key experts in the field, the work is designed to contrast the processes and outcomes of democratic reform in a wide range of different societies, evaluating the influence of factors such as religion, economic development, and financial resources. It is structured thematically into four broad sections: Section I provides a regional tour d’horizon of the current state of democratisation and democracy in eight regions around the world Section II examines key structures, processes and outcomes of democratisation and democracy Section III focuses on the relationship between democratisation and international relations through examination of a range of issues and actors including: the third and fourth waves of democracy, political conditionality, the United Nations, the European Union, the African Union and the Organisation of African States Section IV Examines the interaction between democratisation and development with a focus on poverty and inequality, security, human rights, gender, war, and conflict resolution. A comprehensive survey of democratization across the world, this work will be essential reading for scholars and policy-makers alike.
Author: Lawrence LeDuc Publisher: Peterborough, Ont. : Broadview Press ISBN: Category : Political Science Languages : en Pages : 224
Book Description
This book aims to provide a comprehensive, up-to-date survey of direct democratic institutions and devices as they have developed both in the thinking of modern political theorists and in actual political practice in the world's major democratic nations.
Author: Laurence Morel
Author: Maija Setälä
Author: Justin Fisher
Author: Thomas E. Cronin
Author: John G. Matsusaka
Author: Leah Trueblood
Author: Julie Smith
Author: Jeffrey Haynes
Author: Lawrence LeDuc
Author: David Butler