British legend and wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill once opined that “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.” In 2024, the future of this amorphous word caused beard-rending and pearl-clutching on an epic scale. Nowhere was this truer than in the American halls of power and supportive Fourth Estate. But were the harbingers of doom wrong? And did they even understand precisely what they were lamenting?
First Things First
The United States is not a democracy. The constitutional republic founded more than two centuries ago utilizes democratic processes, but it is not a democracy. So, when cries of the “death of democracy” rang in the ears of voters last year, what was the fear? It seems the prevalent lament was perhaps an effort to usurp the mechanism of American politics, specifically the Electoral College (EC), by appealing to a baser – and ultimately incorrect – interpretation of how government works.
Donald Trump defeated the odds and won not only the EC but also the popular vote, effectively neutering the argument. Yet discussions of how democracy fared in 2024 remain ubiquitous. Surely, democracy was served by his historic win? Apparently, only for those who are willing to accept the final score.
However, the demise-of-democracy fever dream has spread far beyond the shores of the US.
A Word from Africa
Pan-African survey company Afrobarometer has been tracking attitudes to democracy across the continent. What they found was that – while still being favored by a plurality – this form of governance is losing support. On the statement that “democracy is preferable to any other kind of government,” South Africa registered a drop of 29% to just 43% over the last decade. It’s a similar situation in many other African nations.
Does this indicate that democracy is in decline as a political ideal? Not necessarily.
While there is almost certainly a rise in fascination with socialism – and even communism – in many parts of the Western world, this is an outlier that can most likely be put down to the ideological control of academic institutions by radicals. The real culprit for democracy’s capital depletion was hinted at by a report in the Guardian that covered the Afrobarometer survey:
“The [2021 and 2023] surveys found Africans have also become less satisfied with the way democracy works in their countries over the last decade, with the growing discontent linked to perceptions that economic conditions have worsened and that corruption and impunity have increased.”
So is the issue not that democracy is disfavored but that the governments and institutions who wield the levers are, rightly or wrongly, thought to be corrupt and self-serving? It seems that “the Swamp” exists beyond the confines of just Washington, DC.
Lessons of Democracy From the Past
The grand experiment brought about by Cleisthenes around 510 BC was the first significant (recorded) attempt at rule by the people for the people. It was a culmination of earlier reforms and served the Athenian people well for almost 200 years – ending when Phillip II of Macedonia set his eyes on the Mediterranean jewel.
But those two centuries were not uninterrupted. There were coups. There was the rise of the oligarchs, a smattering of tyrants, and each time, it rebounded. Until it couldn’t. Democracy was not gone from the Greek city-states, but it was something that changed from the initial ideal.
The influence and example of Athenian Democracy, however, was to endure.
Churchill’s “Little Man”
Speaking to Parliament in 1944, Churchill offered his thoughts on democracy. He said:
“At the bottom of all the tributes paid to democracy is the little man, walking into the little booth, with a little pencil, making a little cross on a little bit of paper; no amount of rhetoric or voluminous discussion can possibly diminish the overwhelming importance of that point.”
It appears the great statesman was saying that democracy works because an individual makes the effort to cast a vote, presumably in his own interests. Think how different this conceptualization is from modern political rhetoric.
We are inundated with pleas to vote beyond our “selfish” interests and, instead, in favor of “victim groups.” Whether these groups are illegal immigrants, career criminals seeking slaps on the wrist, people who would deny women their own spaces, or any number of subgroups that allow politicos to segregate people into the Marxist oppressor and oppressed categories.
Do these divisions represent democracy? As Ayn Rand famously wrote, “The smallest minority on earth is the individual. Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities.”
The Democracy Scorecard
There were more than 80 national elections in 2024. A handful came with accusations of rigging and authoritarian control, but the majority were simply elections to decide a new government. With so many demonstrations of democracy, how could one suggest with a straight face that “democracy is on the brink”? Specifically, how could the American political class and media allies justify the hyperbole when Donald Trump was playing the very same electoral game as his opponents, albeit, as it turned out, more successfully?
He set up a command center, took donations, and campaigned predominantly in the battleground states – just as Kamala Harris did. That more people voted for one candidate over another is the natural and predictable outcome that one would expect from a system that relies on democracy.
The same thing happened in scores of elections last year – yet the lament continues. Democracy, in all its guises, whether as part of a constitutional republic or any other brand, went ahead and delivered the leadership that the people chose. The political class and denizens of the Fourth Estate wanted democracy. Well, they got it. They just didn’t like the results.
