Pressure Groups versus Voter Representation - Essay Example

?Free elections, competition, and pressure groups, versus voter representation Democracy, traditionally conceptualized in today’s free world as leadership of the people by the people, is ostensibly the most significant aspect of global politics and, despite the staggering state of the democratization process all over the world, most countries have shown a remarkable commitment to moving from totalitarianism and anarchism to democracy. The true essence of democracy in the sense of the free world is the ability to elect leaders or representatives of the people through a free and fair election process that ensures the will and aspirations of the people who vote in those elections are captured effectively rather than being undermined through undercut means and mechanisms. Competition between rival political parties provides the ground for issue-based politics and thereby offering the people an opportunity to make informed choices between the different alternatives by electing leaders who best fit the job description and espouse the interests of the majority. Nevertheless, pressure groups also play a very profound role in global politics today because they put elected leaders to task, to deliver their election pledges to the people, as well as acting as the people’s watchdog, protecting and advocating for the interests of the electorates. In that case, free elections, competition between political parties and pressure groups have significant impacts on democracy, and in particular, with the pervasive increase in both the size and number of pressure groups in the world, debates have emerged regarding implications of these factors on democracy. For instance, questions have been raised concerning whether pressure groups promote democracy or whether they undermine it by impeding election of the right leadership; this paper will evaluate the effectiveness of free elections, competition between political parties, and the activities of pressure groups, in ensuring representation of the voters. Free elections are effective in ensuring the people are represented because they capture the true will and aspirations of a majority of people, which is the true essence of democracy in a free world, without undermining their voice through undercut means such as election rigging. Precursors to free elections include an impartial administration, that ensures enrolment is open to all eligible voters and casting of the vote is reasonably accessible to all, as well as, freedom from coercion, which ensures that the electorates are not compelled to make choices (Fletcher 2007, p.2). Additionally, a free electioneering process thrives on freedom of expression and association that allows all citizens to participate in the electoral debates, and truthful election data systems that ensures that votes are counted fairly and accurately without falsifications whatsoever. In this regard, a free election is one that genuinely reflects the will of the people, and in which votes count equally, candidates campaign freely in a level playing field without restrictive infringements; allegations of dirty tricks coupled with unfair propaganda are some of the factors that undermine a free election. Leaderships who ascent to political offices through dirty tricks and unfair propaganda will hardly represent the electorates because they are a bunch of selfish self-serving individuals who owe no allegiance to the people thus they are accountable to no one in particular. Conversely, leaders who are put into office through fair elections are an embodiment of both the will and aspirations of the people thus will represent electorates effectively, because they are accountable to them. Free elections promote representation because they are the only source of political elites that can articulate the interests of the people through governance and democracy, unlike in dictatorships, where leadership is imposed upon the people regardless of whether it has the support of the majority of the people or whether it serves their interests. Competition between political parties is also essential in ensuring people are represented especially because different parties represent the will and aspirations of the citizens as authentically as possible thereby encouraging participation in politics and enabling people to influence politics and political decisions subsequently. Undeniably, a modern representative democracy is not feasible in the absence of political parties because it is them that continuously articulate and integrate different interests, visions, and opinions of the electorates, as well as, being the source for recruitment of political elites that espouse the will and aspirations of the voters (Hofmeister and Grabow 2011, p.8). The various political parties try as much as possible to be the voice of the broad sectors of society, by taking positions on the significant questions and topics related to public order and organization of society. In that case, competition among political parties is expressed in terms of the best ways of resolving political concerns that are of interest to the majority, and the people are given the responsibility of choosing the political party that offers the working formula. This competition is effective because it compels the political parties to be as representative as possible to attract support of the majority electorates, without which, they cannot obtain power and influence to enforce their political vision, and subsequently organize society. In the absence of competition between political parties, the people are not represented effectively because the dominant ruling party will often serve the interests of those in power at the expense of the people. For instance, in dictatorships, the dominant political parties will have amassed all the power and influence to make decisions on behalf of all the electorates even if those decisions are promoting the interests of the ruling elite only, rather than the will and aspirations of the majority. Pressure groups, organized associations that do not field candidates for election, but seeks to influence government policy or legislation, also lead to effective representation because they hold the government accountable to its role of promoting the welfare and interests of the people, rather than merely politicking without service to the electorates. The pressure groups have a significant impact on democracy because just like political parties, they channel the views and interests of the people to the government of the day, thus, carrying out representation (Palgrave n.d, p.137), and facilitating political participation and contributing to the policy formulation process. In their representation function, pressure groups provide a mouthpiece for people that are not adequately represented through the electoral process or by political parties, and effectively so, because they can focus on the specific rather than the general, what is ostensibly referred to as functional representation. It is evident that pressure groups do promote democracy because in addition to supplementing the electoral democracy, they widen political participation, promote education, as well as ensuring competition, and debate in the electioneering process (Historylearningsite, n.d). Unlike the electoral process, which only takes place once in five years or so, pressure groups are active continuously, keeping the government in touch with public opinions between elections, thus representing the people’s interests and views all round political cycles making it hard for them to be ignored. Pressure groups promote democracy by enhancing participation in the electoral process, for instance, falling party membership and declining election turnout in the UK has effectively been dealt with through the growth in both the number and size of pressure groups. Democracy thrives on the ability of the electorates to make brilliant choices of leadership in the electoral process, but insufficient education normally undermines democracy; therefore, pressure groups promote democracy by creating a better-informed and more educated electorate. Overall, free elections, competition between political parties, and pressure groups are significant factors that influence voting behaviour of the electorates thereby promoting democracy in return, as the people are represented effectively in the elected governments. Free elections promote representation by allowing the people to choose the right leadership that espouses their interests and aspirations, rather than being compelled to accept leaders that have the least incentive in representing the people as in the case of dictatorships. Free elections succeed in promoting representation because they support freedom of expression and association that allows people to participate in the electoral debates and in the elections fully, thereby yielding leadership that represents their interests and aspirations. Competition between political parties promotes representation especially because political parties represent the will and interests of the people, thereby increasing participation in the electoral process that leads to the people choosing the party that represents their issues as authentically as possible. Without this competition among political parties, there can hardly be representation of the people because the dominant parties inevitably serve the interests of a few individuals in power at the expense of the electorates who would have no power and influence. Pressure groups equally influence representation positively by channelling the views and opinions of the people to the government through lobbying, thereby influencing legislation and policy formulation subsequently. Pressure groups enhance promote democracy by enhancing participation in the electoral process, creating informed electorates who can make decisions on the nature of representation that is effective in addressing their issues. In the UK in particular, pressure groups have largely contributed to democracy by increasing party membership and voter turnout in the electoral process, unlike before, thus, pressure groups have a positive contribution to democracy. References Fletcher F. 2007. Free and fair elections: Regulations that ensure a “fair go. [Online] Available at: http://www.sisr.net/publications/0706fletcher.pdf [Accessed 22nd July, 2013] Historylearningsite. Do pressure groups add to democracy. [online] Available at: http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/do_pressure_groups_add_to_democr.htm [Accessed 22nd July, 2013] Hofmeister, W. and Grabow K. 2011. “Political Parties: Functions and Organization in Democratic societies. [Online] Available at: http://www.kas.de/wf/doc/kas_7671-1442-2-30.pdf?120920114742 [Accessed 22nd July, 2013] Palgrave. n.d. Pressure Groups. Google.com. [Online] Available at:Available at: http://www.palgrave.com/PDFs/0230201733.pdf [Accessed 22nd July, 2013] Read More