Why do people hold that United States is more properly called a republic rather than a democracy?

Answer 1

Some people insist that the us is more properly called a republic rather than a democracy. They hold taht in a republic the sovereign power is held by those eligible to voe, while the political power is exercised by representatives chosen by and held responsible to those citizens. For the, democracy can be defined only in terms of direct democracy. Whatever the terms used, remember that in a democracy the people are sovereign. They are the only source for any and all of government's power. in other words, the people rule.

Answer 2

Because words mean things and have specific definitions. A democracy is where all voters vote on every issue. A republic is where citizens elect representatives to vote for them. One can easily see how impossible a situation would be if all 150 million voters had to vote on EVERY issue before them. A totally unworkable system.

The U.S. form of government is properly called a Representative Republic.

Answer 3

In a Democracy there is no need for a Constitution, since the majority can simply change Law at a whim. In a Republic, there is a Law above the government, and in the U.S. there is a written Constitution. Also, the American Pledge of Allegiance declares it to be a republic: "...and to the republic for which it stands, one nation..."

Answer 4

The word "democracy" comes from the Greek roots DEMOS ("the people") and CRAT ("to rule"). It literally means "rule by the people". In a pure democracy, laws are created and changed based on majority rule. State initiatives are a good example of pure democracy at work; a vote is put to the voting populace (one citizen = one vote) in the form of a question. For example: "Should all stop signs in the state of Washington be replaced by roundabouts to improve the flow of traffic?". If 51% or more of the voters of Washington state vote YES on such an initiative, then the law changes and the state must replace all stop signs with roundabouts.

The word "republic" on the other hand, comes from the two Latin roots RES (the "thing") and PUBLICA ('the public"). It literally means "the people's thing" or "the Law". In a republic, all citizens are under the Law and a simple swing of public opinion toward a law doesn't suffice in order to change it. In order to pass a federal law that would currently violate the U.S. Constitution, the Constitution itself must be amended through a lengthy and balanced process of debate and review by the three branches of federal government.

Answer 5

Because it is a republic, or more precisely a democratic republic. A true democracy is not a practical form of government for anything larger than a small village (if even that).

In a republic the country is governed by elected or appointed representatives. All of the people responsible for governing the US (i.e. president, vice president, congressmen, senators, court judges) are elected or appointed. In a democratic republic all the people have the right to vote for representatives in periodic elections (at least in principle), other forms of republic only allow certain classes of people (e.g. the nobility, wealthy businessmen) to vote.

In a democracy the country would be governed by all the people and an election involving all the people would be needed for every government decision (of which many happen every day), there would be no time left for people to live their lives and all these elections would be so expensive they would bankrupt the country.

Answer 6

I think many country all like to called a republic

Answer 7

A Republic is a form of government in which the people elect representatives to make the laws.