Decline of democracy? Part 1

Ronald Wintrobe

Chapter 27 in Elgar Encyclopedia of Public Choice, 2025, pp 187-193 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter develops a simple model to explain the recent decline in democratic liberalism. The basic idea employed is an economic version of Anderson's (1983) concept of belonging to an “Imagined Community.” I will use the model to solve the “free rider” paradox of voting. I then develop some conditions for democratic liberalism to work well, based on the idea that successful democracies provide a primary imaginary community for their citizens. In the companion piece to this chapter (Part 2), I suggest that all of the reasons behind the recent decline of democratic liberalism can be interpreted this way.

Keywords: Democratic liberalism; Decline; Community; Paradox of voting (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781802207743
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