Suchergebnisse

This volume analyses how the use of referendums affects the central functions and characteristics of representative democracy and provides a balanced account on the interaction between referendums, representative institutions and actors.

Between 1898 and 1918, many US states introduced the initiative, referendum and recall, known as direct democracy. Most interpreters have seen the motives for these reforms as purely political, but this study demonstrates that the call for direct democracy was rooted in antimonopoly sentiment.

"In October 1992 Canada's political leaders asked voters to accept the Charlottetown Accord, a comprehensive package of constitutional amendments that was the product of years of negotiation, consultation, and compromise. Canadians rejected it outright, effectively halting the country's formal constitutional evolution. But what did the No vote mean? Were voters making a considered judgment after thorough consideration of the package or were they expressing their anger with politicians, particularly Prime Minister Brian Mulroney? The Challenge of Direct Democracy provides the definitive account of the 1992 referendum on the Charlottetown Accord." "Based on extensive surveys conducted during and after the campaign, The Challenge of Direct Democracy is a comprehensive investigation of voter opinion, intention, perception, and behaviour in a referendum. The authors investigate voters' responses to arguments for and against the Accord, examine how well informed voters were, and explore a variety of explanations to account for the negative result."--Jacket

"The setting up of the Scottish Parliament heralds a major change in UK politics and this book provides the definitive account of how the Parliament came to be established. The authors trace the development and growth of 'Home Rule' sentiment in Scotland during the twentieth century, with detailed consideration of the period from the 1970s to the 1990s, and of the processes which led to a referendum being held on the issue within six months of the election of the new Labour government."--Jacket

The 1994 European Elections focused public attention on the perception that representatives put integration above public interest. The contributors here critically assess the diagnosis of the ailment, and proposed solutions.

In Demanding Choices, Shaun Bowler and Todd Donovan explore how voters make decisions in direct referenda. The authors ask if voters have easy and accessible information about an issue and if the choices voters make seem sensible given their interests and the information they have. Looking at the way voters respond to different kinds of questions, the authors suggest that while direct democracy has its failings, the flaws do not necessarily lie with citizens being "duped", or with voters approving propositions they do not want or understand