The way we engage with politics today has radically shifted. Practices of Democracy: An Introduction is the first comparative politics textbook which offers an engaging assessment of different forms of democracy. With an in-depth yet accessible exploration of four models of democracy – representative, direct, deliberative and technocratic models of government – this book shows how democracy can be strengthened and saved in times of crisis. 

Taking a truly global perspective, examples of models of democracy are used to bring theory to life, to show how politics operates today. This pathbreaking new textbook spans all the core concerns of politics – from elections and voting to the role of political parties and legislatures, from political communication to migration and populism. Today, the role of referendums, citizen assemblies and experts shape our societies in profound ways. 

Packed with case studies and features, this textbook is essential reading for anyone studying democracies, democratic innovations and Comparative Politics, whether at the undergraduate or postgraduate level. 

Sergiu Gherghina is Associate Professor in Comparative Politics at Department of Politics and International Studies, University of Glasgow, UK.

Jean-Benoit Pilet is Professor of Political Science at the Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium.

Jane Suiter is Professor of Political Communication in the School of Communications at Dublin City University, Ireland.