Solutions to the problem of low participation
It could be argued, however, that low participation undermines democracy. How
democratic are liberal political systems if, in the USA, for example, the president
can be elected with hardly more than half the population exercising their vote? This
means that whatever his majority, he is supported by a minority of the electorate.
In hisLife and Times of Liberal Democracy,Macpherson sets about constructing
a participatory model, arguing that somehow participatory democrats have to break
the vicious circle between an apathy which leads to inequality (as the poor and
vulnerable lose out), and inequality which generates apathy (as the poor and
vulnerable feel impotent and irrelevant). Macpherson’s argument is an interesting
one, because he takes the view that one needs to start with people as they are. Let
us assume that the individual is simply a market-oriented consumer who does
not feel motivated to vote or, if they vote, do so in order to further their own
immediate interests. There are three issues which Macpherson feels work to break
this vicious circle.
To consume comfortably and confidently, one needs a relatively decent
environment. Going fishing assumes that there are fish to catch and they are safe
to eat; swimming can only take place if the sea is not so polluted as to be positively
dangerous. A concern about the environment leads the most politically apathetic
consumer to contemplate joining an ecological organisation. That is the first
loophole.
From a concern with the physical environment, the consumer moves onto the
social environment. Inner urban decay, ill-planned housing estates, the ravages of
property developers: all these and related issues compel people to become concerned
with politics, while insecurity and boredom at the workplace makes it inevitable
that there will be involvement in trade union and professional association campaigns
for job protection, better pensions, etc.
One can add numerous other issues that are forcing people to take a greater
concern in the political process. It is crucial not to define politics too narrowly since
people participate in all kinds of different ways, and even the person who does not
vote may join, say, Amnesty International or Greenpeace in Britain. There is an
argument (that we will consider in a moment) for increasing the number of people
who vote in parliamentary elections, but it is important to see that democracy
requires participation at different levels, and in different ways. The large numbers
of people who turned out to protest against the war with Iraq in London in 2003
showed that a lack of concern with politics can be exaggerated, and the rise of what
are usually called the new social movements – single-issue organisations concerned
with peace, the environment, rights of women, etc. – indicate that there is increasing
participation, even if some of this participation seems unconventional in character.
There is a growing feeling that ‘normal’ political processes – in local government,
in electing people to parliament – must change in the sense that these institutions
need to become more accessible and intelligible to people on the street. In Britain,
for example, there is growing interest in schemes to assist voting and voter
registration; in reforming legislative chambers; making local government more
exciting; introducing devolved and regional government; and other schemes to
increase levels of interest and involvement in conventional political processes.106 Part 1 Classical ideas