A democratic regime is one of the most difficult in terms of implementation among other regimes in politics. It arose even in antiquity and literally designated "people's power." Since the "Politics" of Aristotle was translated in 1260 and the word "democracy" was used for the first time, disputes about its meaning and the essence of this regime have not stopped. Along with the development of society, evolution took place in its comprehension.
So, in ancient times, starting from the 5th century BC, the democratic regime was understood as the direct rule of citizens who lived in policies with a small population. It was based on the desire of people to coexist, to create benefits for all, to mutual respect. Decisions were made by a majority vote of free citizens (and there were no more than one percent for three million inhabitants). At the same time, the ancient democratic regime had several qualifications: settled, citizenship, and property. Then democracy was considered not the best regime, since in reality it was not ruled by citizens with a low level of political culture, but by rulers. Democracy quickly passed into the power of the crowd, and then turned into tyranny.
The next concept is legal or classic. It appeared at the time when national states were formed, occupying a larger territory than the policies, and was characterized by conflicting relations between the third estate and the aristocracy. A new round in the development of this concept began after the Great French Revolution. The democratic regime began to be considered by it as such, which rejects elitism, the monarchy, and forms the goals of trends in society and politics. There was a need to create new relations between citizens and the authorities, associated with the requirements of social equality and autonomy. Democracy at this stage was a representative government, which was elected only by wealthy citizens.
There are several modern interpretations of the democratic regime. The differences in them are due to the absence of one principle of analysis of democracy. Proponents of the normative approach believe that initially the model of democratic governance is ideal, however, in practice, it is forced to adapt to practical issues. And supporters of the empirical-descriptive approach believe that the regime is a combination of such political procedures, principles that have shown their effectiveness in practice. In this case, the government, which the people no longer trust, is replaced completely bloodlessly, peacefully.
Understanding of this phenomenon completely depends on what components of it the authors of various theories focus their attention.
The experience of thirty-five countries with a democratic political regime in practice allows us to distinguish the following features and attributes:
1) Legality that applies to everyone. It is confirmed during the election process, when the people elect their representatives, and those, in turn, make important decisions for voters. The media, interest groups and independent people ensure that the authorities to which they cast their votes fulfill their functions.
2) Competition. This is the main phenomenon in democracy, when all candidates have the right to participate in competitive elections, to compete among themselves for the right to represent the will of the people.
3) The presence of several political parties, which helps people make informed choices.
4) Social, civil and political rights of the population.
A democratic regime is characterized by vulnerability in an environment that often changes. At the same time, in stable societies with a high organization, it is a very effective form of the relationship between the government and citizens.
