ABSTRACT
Over the course of time, many developments and changes occurred and have altered the contours of the political system. Although the rise of democracy in the world has been cause for optimism (indeed, this is an improvement for basic human welfare, as also Warren emphasizes (2002)), some scholars are nonetheless concerned with the health of contemporary democracies. They have even expressed a more pessimistic outlook on the future of democracy (e.g. Linz, 2000; Mair, 2005; Pharr, Putnam, & Dalton, 2000). Even though threats to democracy worldwide seem to be less imminent (Dahl, 1998; Linz, 2000), it has been argued that democracies are threatened from within .
