21.3 Subjective values vs objective outcomes

Representational democracy emphasises subjective values

In representational democracy there is usually a lot of discussion about a candidate's values, because it is assumed this underpins their decision making, and voters prefer a candidate that shares the same values. But values are difficult to characterise, and they are subjective, and multi-dimensional.

Direct democracy emphasises objective outcomes

Under direct democracy everyone makes their own decisions on each initiative they care about based on their own subjective values. If there are no candidate leader's values to discuss, the focus of the debate is inevitably on objective questions about the strengths and weaknesses of the technical proposals. This reduces the never-ending debates over subjective values, and the likelihood of people imposing their subjective values on others.