![]() Liberal democracy traces its origins-and its name-to 18th-century Europe, during the Age of Enlightenment. The Agreement of the People (1647), a manifesto for political change proposed by the Levellers during the English Civil War, called for freedom of religion, frequent convening of Parliament and equality under the law See also: History of liberalism John Locke was the first to develop a liberal philosophy as he coherently described the elementary principles of the liberal movement, such as the right to private property and the consent of the governed. The characteristics of liberal democracies are associated with increased political stability, lower corruption, better management of resources, and better health indicators such as life expectancy and infant mortality. Germany, where the federal government assumes the main legislative responsibilities and the federated Länder assume many executive tasks). Many democracies use federalism, also known as vertical separation of powers, in order to prevent abuse and increase public input by dividing governing powers between municipal, provincial and national governments (e.g. Governmental authority is legitimately exercised only in accordance with written, publicly disclosed laws adopted and enforced in accordance with established procedure. a state that follows the principle of rule of law. In Europe, liberal democracies are likely to emphasize the importance of the state being a Rechtsstaat, i.e. Multi-party systems with at least two persistent, viable political parties are characteristic of liberal democracies. Liberal democracy emphasizes the separation of powers, an independent judiciary, and a system of checks and balances between branches of government. After a period of expansion in the second half of the 20th century, liberal democracy became a prevalent political system in the world. These ideas and beliefs influenced the American Revolution and the French Revolution. By the late 18th century, leading philosophers such as John Locke had published works that spread around the European continent and beyond. Some of these ideas began to be expressed in England in the 17th century. They further argued that governments exist to serve the people-not vice versa-and that laws should apply to those who govern as well as to the governed (a concept known as rule of law). ![]() They argued that all people are created equal and therefore political authority cannot be justified on the basis of noble blood, a supposed privileged connection to God, or any other characteristic that is alleged to make one person superior to others. The conventional views supporting monarchies and aristocracies were challenged at first by a relatively small group of Enlightenment intellectuals, who believed that human affairs should be guided by reason and principles of liberty and equality. Liberal democracy traces its origins-and its name-to the Age of Enlightenment. Liberal democracies are contrasted with illiberal democracies and with dictatorships. It may have a parliamentary system (such as Australia, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, India, Ireland, and the United Kingdom), a presidential system (such as Indonesia and the United States), or a semi-presidential system (such as France). A liberal democracy may take various and mixed constitutional forms: it may be a constitutional monarchy (such as Australia, Belgium, Canada, Japan, Norway, Netherlands, Spain, and the United Kingdom) or a republic (such as France, Germany, India, Ireland, and the United States). The purpose of a constitution is often seen as a limit on the authority of the government. ![]() To define the system in practice, liberal democracies often draw upon a constitution, either codified or uncodified, to delineate the powers of government and enshrine the social contract. Liberal democracy, substantive democracy, or Western democracy is a form of government that combines the organization of a representative democracy with ideas from of liberal political philosophy.Ĭommon elements within a liberal democracy are: elections between or among multiple distinct political parties, a separation of powers into different branches of government, the rule of law in everyday life as part of an open society, a market economy with private property, universal suffrage, and the equal protection of human rights, civil rights, civil liberties, and political freedoms for all people. Several nations and territories can present arguments for being the first with universal suffrage. The Eduskunta, the parliament of the Grand Duchy of Finland (then part of Russia), had universal suffrage in 1906.
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