Citizen Participation

Is participation essential for a democracy to work? Explain some of the ways citizens participate and if/ why it is important.

I believe that participation is very important for a democracy to function because a democracy’s main value and purpose are active citizenship and giving power to the people. If people did not participate in a democratic society, it can no longer be called a democracy. Instead, it would be considered an authoritative type of government instead, where all power and ruling lies in one leader, which diminishes the purpose of democracy- where power is vested in the people. The people can rule either directly or through freely elected representatives. In a democracy, communities and people should be actively involved in the government, not just to find solutions of their concerns but as an important pathway to build communication and cooperation with government and strengthen democracy and democratic values. This will ensure that citizens have an opportunity to provide input on local and global decisions before they go into effect.

The primary and most prominent way citizens participate in voting. Citizens eligible to vote have the power to select which leader and political party will benefit the community and stand with their values. If not all the eligible citizens vote, this will defeat the purpose of a fair democratic society as not all opinions are accounted for. Recently, citizens participated in a mandatory census. I think that it is very important to participate in the census because it helps the government plan for the people and gives them ideas of what the people's needs and values are, For example, if there are more children in a concentrated area of a city/town, the government may want to input for children appropriate areas, for example parks or