In this blog post, we examine the idea that democracy can only be consolidated when it goes beyond mere procedures to secure substantive participation, and explain how civil society, politics, the state, and the economy support this.
The transition from authoritarianism to democracy refers to the process of establishing democratic procedures by excluding illegitimate authoritarian political forces from state power and forming a government through electoral competition. Advocates who emphasize the transition process to democracy commonly stress that democracy is an institutional mechanism whereby political parties and politicians who secure a majority of votes in free and fair electoral competition—aimed at gaining public support—exercise state power. Understanding democracy as a fundamental set of procedures that guarantees political competition and participation is also an extension of this explanation. Such procedural institutions include the right to vote, the right to hold public office, free and fair elections, freedom of association, and freedom of expression.
However, an expansion of opportunities for participation does not automatically lead to an expansion of substantive participation. Furthermore, even if representatives and a government are formed through regular and fair electoral competition, and procedures to represent the people are established, this does not automatically resolve economic disparities and social conflicts. This is evidenced by the reality in many democratic nations today, where the irrational distribution of power and resources leads to widespread abuse of power and socio-economic inequality, fostering conflict and tension. Therefore, to more firmly guarantee political representation stemming from public participation and choice, substantive mechanisms must be established to ensure that socially vulnerable groups can participate in and be represented within the political process. Furthermore, as political institutions make policy decisions regarding resource allocation and implement them, they must ensure responsiveness—that is, that their outcomes and performance efficiently and effectively meet the demands of the people. Additionally, elected representatives must be held accountable to act as full agents of the people, and accountability must be strengthened so that representatives who fail to act in the public interest are removed through institutional mechanisms.
This is referred to as the consolidation of democracy—the process by which democracy establishes itself as a self-sustaining system by institutionalizing societal uncertainty and instability through the participation of diverse citizens. Modern society is a structure in which subsystems such as civil society, political society, the state, and economic society are intricately intertwined. The consolidation of democracy involves the institutionalization of each of these subsystems, and furthermore, these subsystems form interdependent relationships.
First, the consolidation of democracy becomes possible when associations within civil society—which perform the functions of expressing and aggregating interests—are organized more comprehensively, and when cooperative networks and social trust are established to mediate conflicts of interest. This is because conflict mediation becomes easier when the individual and collective interests of society’s members are not scattered individually, but rather when demands within civil society are appropriately aggregated through autonomous associations and institutional mechanisms.
Furthermore, democracy can be consolidated when the political sphere—comprising elections, political parties, and parliament—is equipped with norms, rules, and procedures capable of normally resolving conflicts arising from social and economic cleavages. Democracy matures when formal and informal actors in the political sphere are organized in response to the structure of socio-economic cleavages, and when a structure is institutionalized that can rationally reflect their interests in the political domain.
Furthermore, the state’s capacity to attempt conflict resolution through effective and efficient policy-making and implementation, as well as the state’s autonomy—free from the pressure or interests of dominant economic forces—are also crucial factors in the consolidation of democracy. The state must not be reduced to a mere instrumental means for advancing the political and economic interests of specific groups; rather, it must possess the capacity to integrate the interests of society’s members through rational governance. This is a decisive factor in preventing the spread of conflict and establishing democracy.
Finally, democracy is consolidated when the economic and social sphere—which mediates between the state and the market—institutionalizes, through consensus, a social safety net capable of mitigating the social and economic inequalities faced by those left behind by the market. This is achieved by enhancing the productivity and efficiency of capital and by establishing welfare systems that address the unethical aspects of the market economy. This process is essential for democracy to establish itself as a sustainable system and holds significant importance for securing the balance and stability of society as a whole.
