Views on Representative Democracy

He believed that the bureaucrats hold the crux of the power simply because they deal with politics on a day-to-day basis, and are familiar with the inner workings of the government. The same theory applies in a pluralist society, in which political resources are so widely scattered that no single group or government institution can dominate the political process. Weber stressed the role of the bureaucracy in the political process. Thus, the government must remain responsive to the interests of the people. He claimed that this triumvirate serves the interests of the elite, not that of the majority. Instead, government policies are the result of a complex pattern of political haggling, compromises, and shifting alliances. Such a situation would render impossible any form of representative democracy, because the great majority of the people would hold no influence on (or knowledge of ) the government’s decisions.

The bureaucratic view of political elites, created and espoused by Max Weber, criticizes Marx for assigning exclusive significance to economic power. Thus, it is unlikely that a true “power elite” exists in the USA today. In the USA, however, our governmental system allows a considerable amount of power to the majority, for our representatives can only hold office if the majority of the populace votes for them. While, in a representative democracy, officials of the government work for the interests of their constituents, government leaders in a Marxist political system would have no obligation to do as the people demand. These representatives are then checked by the wishes of the people; they don’t want to alienate their constituents, for most are aiming for reelection. Mills believed that a nongovernmental elite composed of three tiers – corporate leaders, military officers, and top political officials – makes most of a society’s major decisions. social/economic class would then construct policies that promote their own interests, not the interests of the other classes. In a representative democracy, no one faction or elite commands most or all of the nation’s political power.