What were some of Rome's contributions to democracy?

Answer 1

Very little. The idea of democracy comes from Athens, from the period when Athens was s democracy, which to the Greeks literally meant rule by the people.

The Romans did not have any theory of democracy. In fact, this Greek concept was alient to them.

The period of the Roman Republic (509-27 B.C., which followed the monarchy and was then replaced by rule of the emperors) had some democratic elements. The citizens had the right to vote and voted in the popular assemblies. the Assembly of the Soldiers, the Assembly of the Tribes, and the Plebeian Council. However, they had little weight in Roman politics. There were five types elected officers of state. However, the higher officials were elected by the Assembly of the soldier whose voting system was heavily stacked in favour of the rich. Politics was pretty much dominated by the unelected Senate which represented the interests of the aristocracy. The Roman Republic, despite its democratic elements, was effectively an oligarchy.