ABSTRACT
Since no acknowledged post-national democracy exists today, an empirically oriented political scientist might conclude that the discussion of post-national democracy is better left to theorists. What can we, as political scientists interested in contemporary politics, contribute to the discussion of postnational democracy? Based on what we have learned, can we move the discussion forward? I think we can make progress by grounding such a discussion in those realities of governance that we routinely investigate in our work as political scientists. The work of political scientists who compare political systems has provided us with a great deal of knowledge about operating democracies. Furthermore, scholars of international relations have been investigating how democracies interact with one another at the international level. I think that the knowledge can in fact help us think a bit more clearly about the possible contours of post-national democracy.
