How we make democracy work

Our democratic system has many flaws. But it is still the best we have. In this post, I write about what I think are the problems with our existing model and what we can do to make the most of it. And I will also envision how we make democracy work in our good system..

I will primarily focus on the European and Austrian systems, since I know them best. There are many differences in democratic systems, which I will mostly ignore. The key elements are more or less the same. The people vote for some representatives, who then make politics. If it isn’t personal elections like a president, most often you only vote for a party. Also, to some degree, people can vote on specific topics. In other words, I ignore Switzerland.

How democracy theoretically works

Theoretically, it would look like this. An election is coming up. Everyone who is allowed to vote studies the election programs of the different parties and votes for the one they think is best for them personally and for the whole country. The elected representatives do as they promised and everything is good.

As we all know, it doesn’t work like this. People vote for a party because their parents do, or they believe in false promises the politicians make, or they just like the candidate, not knowing what he or she is standing for.

And the politicians rarely do what they promised. Many of them just want to be in power.

Nowadays, many policies are so complex that everyday Joe cannot understand them, since even experts often can’t. Climate change, migration, socio-economic policies, etc.

How democracy can work better

How can we make the most of it?

First vote!

Not participating in an election is the wrong answer. It only strengthens the parties, that are the reasons you do not vote.

Second, take your time and inform yourself about the parties. Nowadays, there are platforms on the internet that make it easy. Just search for those relevant to your country. Don’t be afraid to vote for small or new parties if they are the best match for you. Even if they do not end up in parliament, it is better than not voting. Every single vote can motivate the people to move on and change something.

Third, get involved. You do not need to found a party, but I won’t hinder you. You can participate in an existing one. Furthermore, you do not have to do this, either. Motivate your peers, friends, family to vote. Be active online and tell people to use their voice. Go on demonstrations.

One thing that many people forget, and politicians often want the people to forget, is that a democratic system is not just elections. The period between elections is more important, and people have to be active during this time. We are the system. The people have the power. If our employees aka the politicians do a shitty job, we have to get rid of them as soon as possible.

No, don’t assassinate them.

In the long term, we need to educate people better. As I wrote in this post. We have to make it easier for people who live in the country to vote.

Transparency is very essential. The people need to know who the representatives talk to, who pays them, and why they decide the way they do.

Power needs to be spread across many institutions and people. In the past years, many countries have transformed to a more authoritarian system. The president of the USA for example now has much more power than originally intended. This is a problem. One person should not be allowed to have this much power.

This is the moment where I tell you, what I think is a better system.

How we make democracy work

First, because it is important to imagine what I say, in our good system are no countries. There are two levels of government. Local and global.

The local government is elected directly by the citizens of the village, town or city. Or the people decide for themselves, or a mixture of both.

Globally administer elected representatives of the villages, towns, and cities of the system. The government is made up of experts and is more or less technocratic.

Laws, rules and decisions are made by councils, which are made up of randomly but representatively selected citizens. Who listens to different experts and then decide what to do. Citizen assemblies exist already and work great.

Conclusion

If you take one thing away from this post then vote, vote, vote! It is the single most effective thing you can do right now, and it is so easy. You are part of this system, you are the system.

If you are not satisfied with the existing system, and you want to change it for the better, as I do, you still have to participate and vote. By the way, when I say you are the system and in the next sentence I write how bad the system is, I don’t want to insult you; really, I don’t.

There are many things not running well right now. This can be overwhelming. It can make you feel powerless with all the destructive forces on the rise. That’s part of the populist strategy—to make you feel powerless. But you are the power. The majority of people are good, but they are silent. What you hear are loud minorities. Raise your voice by voting for the good.

Ian DeBay

My name is Ian DeBay.

I am the founder of iandebay.com. I am a content creator, blogger, podcast, YouTuber. This is my blog where I talk about system change, sustainability and other fun stuff.