Democracy Essay example -- American Government, Politics, California

Democracy has many important values that we see practiced in democratic nations such as the United States, representation is one if not the most important democratic value. In many nations, voting, a granted right of citizenship has been given additional importance by making it a mandatory civil activity in industrialized nations. Voting is the first step of the process of representation since this activity allows us to elect officials who supposedly represent the interest of their constituents. According to Lustig, California currently suffers a representation crisis; his assumptions are quite accurate for we see that not all eligible voters participate. However, Lustig presents the idea that the representation crisis is beyond voting behavior; changes in political norm and practices have contributed to the crisis. Such issues have weakened the vote for everyone and created an inverted relationship where the representatives pick the electorate rather than the other way around. In t he state of Californian representation, we must acknowledge that the current system of representation is an unsustainable model that does not meet the needs of Californians. Alteration of different norms and practices in the representative process has contributed to the lessening of proper representation in Californian politics; thus, resulting in the representation crisis. In order to understand the severity of the dilemma, we must assess the state of political representation in California. Then we must analyze what does not work in the current system. Furthermore, we must assess the core problem of improper representation through the problems of voting. Alongside voting, redistricting is a crucial topic that must be assessed. In addition, we must see... ...tive of Californians, the legislature is the â€Å"most representative† of Californians. When the topic of representation come up, the legislature is the focus for they represent the people of California as well as enact policies that will affect the lives of Californians. With a growing population, we see that the current electoral system no longer is a viable representative model for California. However, before switching into a new system, we must tackle the lack of political participation through accommodation of the different communities; we must ensure that immigrants feel assimilated to society so that they are engaged to participate in civic duties such as voting. Lastly, when and if we alter our system, the most viable option would be a proportional representative system where Californians are accurately represented without the hindrance of partisanship.