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On the Limitations of Electoral Systems in Expressing the Will of the People
- 1 Buckingham Browne and Nichols School
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Abstract
This paper examines the topic of the extent to which elections reflect the will of the people, a crucial precondition for free and fair elections, cornerstones of a country’s democratic system. This study analyzes free will from two perspectives—the personal and social—identifying education, critical thinking, and the ability to access reliable information as necessary conditions for free will. Conducting a historical-based analysis, this work assesses the mechanisms through which dictators in authoritarian regimes use the role of the ‘election’ as a guise for masking totalitarian oppression. Next, it addresses the more subtle but equally perilous danger of demagogic leaders who take advantage of voter fears and prejudices to pretend to represent the citizens’ will. Lastly, the paper examines how various external factors, even in the framework of a perceived democratic electoral system, can usurp the people’s power. Namely, the nature of big data and targeted political advertising with predictive algorithms, along with disenfranchisement of marginalized groups and inherent flaws in seemingly democratic electoral systems—including the Electoral College or Israel’s fragmented parliamentary system—call into question the strength of the people’s will. The paper then argues that mitigating the flaws that subvert the people’s will necessitates large-scale reforms on a social and institutional level.
Keywords
free will, elections, demagoguery, social media, and disenfranchisement
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Cite this article
Xiong,D. (2025). On the Limitations of Electoral Systems in Expressing the Will of the People. Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media,85,36-42.
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Volume title: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Social Psychology and Humanity Studies
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