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Liberal democracy is a form of representative democracy where majority rule is qualified by respect for constitutional rights that are about to protect several minorities, such as freedom of speech and assembly, freedom of religion, the right to private property and privacy, as well as equality before the law and due process under the rule of law, and many more.

Such constitutional rights (also named liberal rights) are guaranteed through various controled institutions and various statutory laws in order to protect the rights of individuals and minorities from the 'Majoritarianism'.

Some would argue that liberal democracy isn't democratic or liberal at all, since it doens't respect the majority rule at all times. Others would say that only a liberal democracy can guarantee the individual liberties of its citizens and prevent the development into a dictatorship.

Generally liberal democracies are representative democracies. Some of these have an additional system of referenda to give the electorale the possibility to overrule decisions of the elected legislature or even to take decisions by plebiscite without giving the leigslature a say in that decision. Switzerland is a liberal democracy with a representative system completed with referend and plebiscites. Adding referenda to a political system could help preventing the evolution of a liberal democracy in an olicharchy.

Australia, Canada, the member states of the European Union, Iceland, New Zealand, Norway and the United States are all examples of liberal democracy (though of course it is sometimes argued that none is perfect with respect to the above rights).

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See also:

• liberalism

External link

• Definition of word "liberal"

• Elections
• Liberalism