Political Representation: Roles, representatives and the represented (Routledge Research on Social and Political Elites)

In an ideal democracy, representatives would entirely reflect citizens’ views, preferences and wishes in their legislative work. However, real-life democracies do not meet this ideal and citizens’ policy preferences and priorities are mirrored only inadequately.

This book provides new insights on political representation. It is guided by three questions:

• what roles should representatives play?
• Who is actually or should be represented?
• How are the representatives (or how should they be) connected with the represented?

Containing contributions from the perspectives of political theory and philosophy, as well as quantitative empirical studies, the volume demonstrates the need to adapt these established questions to new political realities.

This text will be of key interest to scholars and students of political representation and parties, political theory, democratic theory, political philosophy and comparative politics.

Dr Marc Bühlmann is Executive Director of the Swiss Political Yearbook at the University of Bern.

Jan Fivaz is Ph.D. candidate in Political Science at the University of Lausanne.