ABSTRACT

The study highlights that democracy has historically been a rare phenomenon, and that the mere existence of elections does not guarantee democratic exercise of power; rather, genuine democracy can only be claimed when elections truly represent the public interest. In modern Western democracies, universal, equal, secret, and proportional suffrage gradually developed, yet electoral systems—such as single-round or two-round systems, and uniform versus decentralized procedures—significantly influence the expression of voter will. In two-round systems, the second round can limit the parliamentary representation of parties with strong first-round support (e.g., France, Front Nacional), while in single-round systems, secondary voter preferences cannot be expressed (e.g., Hungary, 2014). In federal systems, differing rules may lead to political disputes and distortions (e.g., USA, 2020), whereas mixed systems, combining single-member districts and proportional elements under a coherent national regulation, most effectively ensure proportionality and voter representation. Overall, the quality of democratic expression depends on the interplay of the electoral system, suffrage principles, and the political-historical context.

keywords

electoral systems, suffrage principles, representative democracy, public interest, proportionaility

Hivatkozás (MLA)

Szmodis, Jenő. „Néhány gondolat a választójog elveiről és a választási rendszerekről.” Jog–Állam–Politika: Jog- és politikatudományi folyóirat, vol. 18, no. 1, 2026, pp. 91-110.
https://doi.org/10.58528/JAP.2026.18-1.91.

IRODALOM

Arisztotelész. Politika. Ford. Kovács Péter, Atlantisz, 2003.

Aylott, Nicholas, and Niklas Bolin. “Sweden: The SD and the Challenges of Political Inclusion.” Scandinavian Political Studies, vol. 44, 2021.

Baker, Peter, and Maggie Haberman. The 2020 U.S. Election and Its Legal Aftermath. The New York Times, 7 Jan. 2021.

Birch, Sarah. Electoral Malpractice. Oxford University Press, 2011.

Bogdanor, Vernon. The Monarchy and the Constitution. Oxford University Press, 1995.

Cox, Gary W. Making Votes Count: Strategic Coordination in the World’s Electoral Systems. Cambridge University Press, 1997.

Dahl, Robert A. On Democracy. Yale University Press, 1998.

Dahl, Robert A. Polyarchy: Participation and Opposition. Yale University Press, 1971.

Deák, Ferenc. Igazságügyi miniszteri rendeletek. 1848.

De Lange, Sarah L., and Andrej Zaslove. “Between Exclusion and Inclusion: Radical Right Parties in Post-War Europe.” Government and Opposition, vol. 52, no. 3, 2023.

Deprez, Katlijn. “Belgium: From Pillarisation to Consociational Democracy.” European Journal of Political Research, 2000.

Desmond, Jack. “Cordon Sanitaire Against the Radical Right in the Netherlands.” Journal of Political Ideologies, vol. 25, 2020.

Duverger, Maurice. Les partis politiques. Presses Universitaires de France, 1951.

Farrell, David M. Electoral Systems: A Comparative Introduction. Palgrave Macmillan, 2011.

Gallagher, Michael, and Paul Mitchell, editors. The Politics of Electoral Systems. Oxford University Press, 2005.

Gerken, Heather K. The Democracy Index: Why Our Election System Is Failing and How to Fix It. Princeton University Press, 2019.

Grofman, Bernard, and Michael Handley. “Gerrymandering in the United States.” Political Science Quarterly, 2015.

Hasen, Richard L. The Voting Wars: From Florida 2000 to the Next Election Meltdown. Yale University Press, 2012.

Held, David. Models of Democracy. Stanford University Press, 2006.

Herron, Michael C., and Daniel A. Smith. “The 2020 U.S. Election and Challenges of Electoral Administration.” Election Law Journal, vol. 20, no. 3, 2021.

Keyssar, Alexander. The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States. Basic Books, 2000.

Knapp, Andrew, and Vincent Wright. The Government and Politics of France. Routledge, 2006.

Knapp, Andrew, and Vincent Wright. The French Presidential and Legislative Elections 2017. Palgrave Macmillan, 2018.

Levitsky, Steven, and Daniel Ziblatt. How Democracies Die. Crown, 2018.

Lijphart, Arend. Patterns of Democracy: Government Forms and Performance in Thirty-Six Countries. Yale University Press, 1999.

Manin, Bernard. The Principles of Representative Government. Cambridge University Press, 1997.

Massicard, Elise. French Political Parties and Elections. Palgrave Macmillan, 2017.

McDonald, Michael P. Federalism and the American Electoral System. Cambridge Univer-
sity Press, 2020.

Mill, John Stuart. Considerations on Representative Government. Parker, Son, and Bourn, 1861.

Norris, Pippa. Electoral Engineering: Voting Rules and Political Behavior. Cambridge University Press, 2004.

Ober, Josiah. Political Dissent in Democratic Athens. Princeton University Press, 1998.

Ober, Josiah. The Athenian Revolution. Princeton University Press, 1996.

Pelinka, Anton. “The FPÖ in Austrian Politics: Between Integration and Exclusion.” West European Politics, vol. 42, 2020.

Pincus, Steve. 1688: The First Modern Revolution. Yale University Press, 2009.

Pugh, Martin. Women and the Women’s Movement in Britain 1914–1959. Macmillan, 1992.

Rae, Douglas W. The Political Consequences of Electoral Laws. Yale University Press, 1967.

Sartori, Giovanni. Comparative Constitutional Engineering. New York University Press, 1994.

Sartori, Giovanni. The Theory of Democracy Revisited. Vols. 1–2, Chatham House, 1987.

Shugart, Matthew S., and John M. Carey. Presidents and Assemblies: Constitutional Design and Electoral Dynamics. Cambridge University Press, 1992.

Sinclair, Barbara. Unorthodox Lawmaking: New Legislative Processes in the U.S. Congress. CQ Press, 2021.

Taagepera, Rein, and Matthew S. Shugart. Seats and Votes: The Effects and Determinants of Electoral Systems. Yale University Press, 1989.

Tóth, Csaba, and András Körösényi. Magyarország választási rendszere és politikai következményei. Akadémiai Kiadó, 2015.