The Future of Representative Democracy

Leading scholars examine the subject of representation, representative democracy and their future.

Sonia Alonso (Edited by), John Keane (Edited by), Wolfgang Merkel (Edited by)

9781107003569, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 31 March 2011

322 pages, 11 b/w illus. 5 tables
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.9 cm, 0.64 kg

'This work considers the nature and future of representative democracy, including its current ills and some remedies. The contributors agree that there is no 'crisis' of this most successful political form since World War II; yet they see 'something new' evolving that they try to grasp with a sense of guarded optimism.' Claus Offe, Hertie School of Governance

The Future of Representative Democracy poses important questions about representation, representative democracy and their future. Inspired by the last major investigation of the subject by Hanna Pitkin over four decades ago, this ambitious volume fills a major gap in the literature by examining the future of representative forms of democracy in terms of present-day trends and past theories of representative democracy. Aware of the pressing need for clarifying key concepts and institutional trends, the volume aims to break down barriers among disciplines and to establish an interdisciplinary dialogue among scholars. The contributors emphasise that representative democracy and its future is a subject of pressing scholarly concern and public importance. Paying close attention to the unfinished, two-centuries-old relationship between democracy and representation, this book offers a fresh perspective on current problems and dilemmas of representative democracy and the possible future development of new forms of democratic representation.

Introduction: rethinking the future of representative democracy Sonia Alonso, John Keane and Wolfgang Merkel
1. Representative democracy and its critics Nadia Urbinati
2. Representative democracy and the populist temptation Klaus von Beyme
3. The wider canvas: representation and democracy in state and society Michael Saward
4. Performance and deficits of present-day representation Bernhard Wessels
5. Do parliaments have a future? David Beetham
6. Engendering representative democracy Drude Dahlerup
7. Representative democracy and the multinational demos Sonia Alonso
8. Diagnosing and designing democracy in Europe Philippe C. Schmitter
9. Monitory democracy? John Keane
10. Representing nature Robyn Eckersley
11. Democracy and representation beyond the nation state Michael Zürn and Gregor Walter-Drop.

Subject Areas: Political structures: democracy [JPHV], Comparative politics [JPB], Political science & theory [JPA], Social & political philosophy [HPS]