View article

Introduction Federalism and democracy are among the core concepts of political science. The respective ideas have informed institutional design and political practice in a great many countries around the world. Over the last few decades, they have been increasingly debated within and beyond academia. At the same time, institutional reforms inspired by federal ideas have been carried out or are underway in several prominent political systems. The theoretical question of the connections between the two is thus most topical and deserves renewed scholarly investigation of the kind conducted in this volume. That there are many linkages between federalism and democracy is beyond doubt. Indeed, it is often argued that they reinforce each other. Certainly, if democracy can exist without federalism, the latter cannot really flourish without the former, as the historical experience of the communist federations amply …