American Government / Unit 1 Gov 007 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Direct Democracy
Captions available
The idea
In a direct democracy, the people make political decisions and pass laws themselves, without intermediaries.
In practice
A town meeting votes the budget line by line; a ballot initiative writes law directly.
Where people slip
Direct mechanisms exist inside representative systems — some states use initiatives; the national government does not.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Builds on
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