Direct Democracy
A system in which citizens decide laws directly through referendums, popular initiatives, assemblies and recall of officials, instead of delegating to representatives, as in the Swiss cantons and classical Athens.
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In one sentence
I want citizens to decide laws through referendums, popular initiatives and recall of officials, with power decentralized to municipalities and cantons.
Political axes
Profile across the 12 axes
- Strong · Federal
Structure
- Very strong · Democracy
Representation
- Leaning · Liberty
Power
- Balanced
Immigration
- Leaning · Pacifist
Diplomacy
- Leaning · Non-interventionist
Intervention
- Balanced
Economy
- Leaning · Free market
Control
- Balanced
Trade
- Leaning · Irreligious
Religion
- Balanced
Morality
- Balanced
Technology
What sets this ideology apart
Structure
Leans further toward federal than 77% of the 248 ideologies in the catalog.
Ideology median 38This ideology 78
Of all the axes, Structure is where it stands furthest from the rest.
Religion
On Religion, it sits practically at the catalog median.
Ideology median 56This ideology 58
Here it shares common ground with most ideologies.
Personalities
Thomas Jefferson
Author of the Declaration of Independence and third US president, Jefferson championed an agrarian republic of small landowners, limited and decentralized government, religious freedom, and distrust of banks, armies, and cities.
Closest, by dimension
PoliticallyIsaiah BerlinPhilosopher96%
SociallyJames MadisonStatesman93%
EconomicallyMark CarneyPrime Minister of Canada96%
Other compatible profiles
Intellectual lifeAldo LeopoldConservationist93%
PoliticsBenjamin FranklinStatesman and scientist93%
PhilosophyJohn Stuart MillPhilosopher92%
Political theoryAhad Ha'amThinker91%
PhilosophyBaruch SpinozaPhilosopher90%
ReligionCharles DarwinNaturalist90%
PoliticsEduardo LeiteGovernor90%
PhilosophyAlexis de TocquevillePhilosopher and statesman90%
The most distant
Countries
Reference country
Switzerland
Liberal direct democracyA European federal confederation, Switzerland is known for its direct democracy, strong cantonal autonomy, historic neutrality, and a prosperous economy based on finance, precision industry, and institutional stability.
Other close countries
Switzerland
Liberal direct democracyA European federal confederation, Switzerland is known for its direct democracy, strong cantonal autonomy, historic neutrality, and a prosperous economy based on finance, precision industry, and institutional stability.
Also close, by dimension
PoliticallyRio Grande do Sul (Brazil)Ranching-agribusiness region94%
SociallyAustriaSocial-neutralist republic96%
EconomicallyGreeceParliamentary republic95%
The most distant
Old Swiss Confederacy
1291–1798Medieval alliance of autonomous cantons formed from the 1291 Pact, the Old Swiss Confederacy operated without a strong central power, combining direct democracy in local assemblies (Landsgemeinde), independent peasant militias, and weak joint military/diplomatic coordination among the cantons.
Also close, by dimension
PoliticallyMedieval Iceland (Commonwealth)c. 930–126281%
SociallyWeimar Republic1919–193385%
EconomicallyRepublican Rome509–27 a.C.87%
The most distant
Ideological proximity
Close ideologies
Closest within Center
- Center
Federalism
Doctrine that organizes the state through a constitutional division of power between a central government and autonomous regional units, such as cantons or states, with their own competencies, independent courts, and mutual checks against excessive concentration of power.
- Center
Republicanism
Political tradition that values popular sovereignty, civic virtue, and the rule of law, defending citizens' self-government, the separation of powers, and protection against tyranny and the corruption of power.
- Center
Green Liberalism
Current that unites individual freedom, markets, and democracy with the ecological agenda, defending sustainability, rights, and innovation to reconcile economic prosperity with effective environmental protection.
Closest in other spectrums
- Right
Agrarianism
Republican tradition that idealizes the small landowning farmer as the basis of civic virtue and liberty, advocating wide distribution of land, limited and decentralized government, and distrust of banks, public debt, industry and large cities.
- Left
Social Liberalism
Branch that combines individual freedoms with strong state action to guarantee welfare, education, and healthcare, defending equal opportunity and social security within the market economy.
- Left
State Liberalism
Liberal current that accepts an active role for the state in the economy and in guaranteeing rights, combining individual freedoms and markets with regulation and public policies aimed at the collective good and equality.
The most distant ideology
Clerical FascismThird Position29%