A Closer Look to the ‘Ever Ending’ Democratic Deficit Discussions in the European Union Cover Image

A Closer Look to the ‘Ever Ending’ Democratic Deficit Discussions in the European Union
A Closer Look to the ‘Ever Ending’ Democratic Deficit Discussions in the European Union

Author(s): Buket Ökten Sipahioğlu
Subject(s): Political history, Economic policy, Government/Political systems, International relations/trade, Post-War period (1950 - 1989), Transformation Period (1990 - 2010), Present Times (2010 - today), EU-Accession / EU-DEvelopment
Published by: Trakya Üniversitesi - İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi
Keywords: European Union; Democracy; Democratic Legitimacy; Democratic Deficit;

Summary/Abstract: Discussions on the authority and responsibility of the European Union (EU) institutions are more than as it seems. As a supranational organization, democratization of the EU has long been discussed. Some researchers have argued that the EU's democracy deficit stems from its structural state. Opposing ideas claim that the EU is democratic enough. In this sense, both the inequality between the institutions and the difference between the structures of the institutions are the subject matter of the discussion. Decision making process is made through European Parliament (EP) in which the members are chosen by the EU states’ public. Despite the limited authorization of EP, this parliament is expected to be the voice of public. Recent Eurozone crisis and the results of the 2019 EP elections flared up the debate. This paper argues that there cannot be direct democracy in the union i.e. citizens cannot participate directly in the Community-decision making process and this does not cause a democratic deficit. The EU is not and cannot be- by nature- a state, therefore its democratization is unquestionable.

  • Issue Year: 12/2021
  • Issue No: 22
  • Page Range: 75-86
  • Page Count: 12
  • Language: English