In recent years there has been a steady alienation of citizens from representative institutions. Some scholars think this is supported by a distorted perception of representation. Following this argument, scholars claim that people just want to replace liberal democracy with direct democracy, imperative mandate or with technocracy. Other scholars however explain this criticism in terms of political disaffection.Citizens wouldn’t really question the representative system, but the actors involved in it. Thus, rather than an expert government, citizens would demand more political competence.This paper will focus on political disaffection and its relationship withtechnocracy and liberal democracy. Using quantitative and qualitative data from South of Europe, we will show that political disaffection has no impact on the importance that citizens give to the basic principles of liberal democracy. Secondly, analyzing citizens' perceptions about political representation, authors will demonstrate that citizens don't support technocracy nor direct democracy.
