Direct democracy is the pure form of governing structure in which all laws and policies imposed by governments are determined by the people themselves, rather than by representatives who are elected by the people. In addition, the direct democracy approach removes the intermediary and is rare in today’s world. Some cantons in Switzerland follow this structure. This governmental structure has a number of benefits and drawbacks to consider. Let us check out the pros and cons of direct democracy in this article.

Also read: Presidential democracy pros and cons

Pros of Direct Democracy

1. In a direct democracy, every citizen’s vote has equal weight.
2. Direct democracy involves everyone. Thus, government control is always at the local level. In addition, the government can not hide information from the people.
3. Simply said, direct democracy would ask the people what they wanted to accomplish and then adopt measures to achieve those goals. Thus, there is more accountability in a direct democracy.
4. Citizens are happier with direct democracy. Administration functions to the pleasure of society when people live in direct democracy.
5. Once the official is chosen to perform a specific job, then they will serve out their full term unless their behavior is illegal in most government arrangements. A community may recall anybody who does not behave in the best interests of everyone in an instant. This pro keeps everyone more honest.
6. Everyone can express their point of view because each person has an equitable stack when debating policies, and laws. Thus, more cooperation occurs under this structure.
7. Direct democracy is an exceptional cost-effective form of governing.
8. Every individual is accountable for taking steps to improve their own quality of life.
9. Direct democracy alters the purpose of the vote.

Cons of Direct Democracy

1. The cost of this type of democracy must be taken into consideration. In addition, if a large country such as the USA implements this, then the cost of lost productivity would be enormous.
2. The topics that are being debated are those that have a local influence.
3. With direct democracy, there is still the risk of vote manipulation to consider.
4. The majority is not required to defend the minority’s rights.
5. Direct democracies are unable to make quick judgments.
6. In a direct democracy, the majority of decisions are made based on self-interest.
7. In a direct democracy, there are concerns of oversight that must be addressed.
8. For direct democracy efforts to be effective, there must be a significant degree of involvement.
9. Direct democracies are prone to high levels of instability.
10. Each voter must be properly educated about the issues on which they will vote.

Thank you for reading this article. If you have any queries regarding our article on the pros and cons of Direct Democracy then do comment in the comment section below.

Explore more information: 

1. Pros and Cons of Democracy
2. Pros and cons of Unitary government
3. Mixed Economy Pros and Cons
4. Pros and cons of the federal government 
5. Pros and Cons of Theocracy
6. Pros and Cons of Monarchy
7. Parliamentary democracy pros and cons
8. Pros and cons of Aristocracy
9. Single party state pros and cons

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Divya Chauhan

Divya Chauhan is an expert writer with 10+ years of experience as a content writer. They specialize in making complex topics like IT, Health, and general topic easy to understand. Divya has written over thousands of articles to help people with their content. Prior to joining Way2benefits’s editorial team in 2020, Divya worked as a Professor of BCA college and freelancer blogger.

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