A_Democracy_Without_Federalism_Would_Be_Un-Democratic

A Democracy without Federalism would be Undemocratic A perfect democratic system faces many challenges according to theorist Robert Dahl. As a result, it is integral for some sort of organization of the nation to fit most of the criteria of a perfect democracy. This form of organization is known as federalism. Federalism enhances Robert Dahl’s ideal democracy due to the opportunities of participation it grants to the people, the greater chance for people’s inclusion, and because it can allow for citizens to control the political agenda. One of Dahl’s conditions for a perfect democracy calls for effective participation from the people. The people cannot participate if they do not, “…have adequate and equal opportunities to express their preferences…” (Edwards III, 16). Federalism helps bring forth participation by creating multiple levels of government. This, in turn, helps provide numerous elected offices for which citizens can either vote or try to take part in. An example of this system can be seen by positions such as the mayor of a city, seats on the town council, and district courts. Also, there exist many issues to vote on throughout the cities and states. These issues are usually called measures that can significantly change a state’s law. Therefore, the opportunity exists for participation. It is the decision of the people on whether or not they wish to partake in the democratic process. From voting to governmental positions, people have access to participation in the American governmental system, thus showing one way in which federalism goes towards an ideal democracy. Another condition that Dahl states for an ideal democracy says that all people must have the capability to be included. As a result, the government has the obligation to, “…include, and extend rights to, all those subject to its laws…” (Edwards III, 17). As a result, the same rights need to be guaranteed to different people despite race, sex, religion, or economic status. Race and sex have been issues for the United States in the past because of discrimination certain groups have faced. The federalist system greatly helped these people seeking their rights by allowing them to have access to higher levels of government when the lower levels would not comply. For example, the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s could not budge the local and state legislatures or courts to rule in their favor, and so they turned to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court made favorable rulings for the civil rights activists in cases such as Brown v. Board of Education. This shows how federalism helps those who feel that they are missing rights that, by the principle of inclusion, should be guaranteed to all in a perfect democracy. The different levels of government allow people to appeal their injustices to those who control more power, and so as a result they can eventually reach the rights that have been infringed upon. Therefore, by making inclusion more easily accessible, federalism enhances Dahl’s idea of a perfect democracy. A third condition of Dahl’s ideal democracy states that the citizens must have control of the political agenda. While the citizens of the United States cannot directly have a say in many laws formed in state legislatures, they can indirectly influence those laws by voting for certain politicians. For example, citizens of Texas who desire a death penalty can vote for state legislators who would in turn help create death penalty legislation. The citizens also vote for those who hold positions at the federal level. Even though the president is determined by electoral votes, most electoral colleges give all of their votes depending on the popular vote within the state. Since the people vote for those who make the decisions at both the state and federal level, the citizens control some aspect of the political agenda in the federalist system. Hence, federalism helps enhance Dahl’s ideal democracy. Despite some flaws of the current federalist system with respect to Dahl’s portrayal of a perfect democracy, federalism does help fulfill many of the important requirements. There are an abundance of opportunities for participation, people can appeal to higher levels of government if they feel as if their rights were infringed, and citizens have a strong control of the political agenda. Ultimately, when the advantages and disadvantages of federalism are weighed, the federalist system ends up enhancing Dahl’s perfect democracy.