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Democracy in the full sense of the word will always be no more than an ideal; one may approach it as one would a horizon, in ways that may be better or worse, but it can never be fully attained.(Vaclav Havel addressing a joint session of the US Congress, 21 February 1990)

Over the past quarter century, citizens and political elites in advanced industrial democracies have displayed a growing willingness to question whether a fundamental commitment to the principles and institutions of representative democracy is sufficient to sustain the legitimacy and effectiveness of current mechanisms of self-government. In most of these nations, turnout in elections has declined, as has party membership and various forms of electoral participation (Gray and Caul 2000; Blais 2000; Wattenberg 2002). In addition, the public is increasingly sceptical of politicians, political parties, and political institutions (Dalton 2004; Pharr and Putnam 2000; Norris 1999a). These signs point to a spreading dissatisfaction with the institutions and processes of representative democracy. These trends are often concomitant with increasing demands for political reforms to expand citizen and interest group access to politics in new ways, as well as to restructure the process of democratic decision-making. Public interest in politics is generally growing across the advanced industrial democracies (Dalton and Wattenberg 2000: 57; Putnam 2002). ¹ Although electoral participation is generally declining, participation is expanding into new forms of action. Today, more people are signing petitions, joining citizen interest groups, and engaging in unconventional forms of political action …