Mike Gotsch

Classics of P and C Theory

9/29/2010

Why the Precepts of “Democracy” are not present in the Constitution of the United States

During the debate over the Constitution, critics charged that the proposed government

was fundamentally and excessively anti-democratic. It is easy to prove that the United States is

fundamentally anti-democratic, as it is a Republic: “The United States shall guarantee to every

State in this Union a Republican Form of Government…”1 And while this statement alone by no

means ensures that the United States is “fundamentally and excessively anti-democratic,” a

number of tenets of the Constitution do imply this. Among those tenets is the excessive power

accorded to representatives in all three branches, the lack of recourse the people have if those

representatives abuse power, and the long terms accorded to representatives. Entering into a

discussion of these tenets as well as some others in the Constitution will show the United States

government to be excessively anti-democratic.

At its root, a republican form of government does not have to be entirely democratic. If

one is to accept democracy as being “rule by the people,” - with “the people” encompassing the

entire citizenry of the nation – then if leaders are to be directly selected by the people it is

essentially democratic. It is evident in the Constitution that this was not the intended policy; the

people were never meant to be allowed to decide on all of the leaders in the executive and

legislative branch.

The Constitution called for the United States Legislature to be split into two separate

houses: the House of Representatives and the Senate. The representatives in the House of

Representatives are to be directly selected by the people of their respective states every two

years, while the representatives in the Senate are to be chosen by a state’s State Legislature every

six years, rotating elections so that only one-third of the entire body will leave in each election.
1
Cahn, Steven M. Classics of Modern Political Theory: Machiavelli to Mill. Oxford University Press: New York,
New York, 1997.
 Mike Gotsch
Classics of P and C Theory
9/29/2010

The elections for the House of Representatives are very democratic, as they directly involve the

entire citizenry of the states. Conversely, the elections for the Senate seem very undemocratic,

as those elected to office are elected by the State Legislature’s, who have been selected through

state elections, but are only representatives of the people; representatives elect representatives in

Constitutional mandated Senatorial elections.

The election of the President can also be seen to be very undemocratic. Those elections

call for special electors to be chosen in accordance with the population in each state, and those

electors then cast the ballot for who should be President, with the individual who receives the

minority being elected. If it should happen that no candidate receives a majority of the votes, the

election does not revert back to the people, but instead goes to the House of Representatives for

deliberation. While the House is the closest thing to the people, as they were directly elected by

them, they still are not the people themselves.

The judicial branch is also founded on anti-democratic precepts. Those individuals who

are selected to serve on the judiciary are nominated by the president, who has been elected by

electors chosen by the State Legislatures, who have been elected by the people. After the

nomination, they must be confirmed by the Senate. The people are completely removed from

this process, as it is the representative of their representatives nominating individual justices, and

the other representatives of their representatives confirming those nominations.

It is evident that the democratic process has some input into which representatives of the

nation are selected, as the State Legislatures have a large amount of say in elections.

In order to “rule,” the people must be allowed to vote on matters pertaining to government;
therefore, “pure democracy,” would be a system in which the people decided on all aspects of
government, especially the laws.
 Mike Gotsch
Classics of P and C Theory
9/29/2010

It is easy to see that from this definition that a “republic” would inherently be anti-
democratic, as the people do not vote directly on matters pertaining to them, but have
representatives who perform that function.