Popular Support for Direct Democracy: Critical but not Compensatory

The apparent popularity of direct democracy contrasts with rising disengagement of citizens from politics. However, as most citizens remain committed to democratic norms and principles part of the rise in discontent can therefore potentially be explained by increased expectations of ‘critical citizens’. Indeed, some argue that such citizens are demanding more participatory opportunities and thus direct democracy may compensate for a decline in conventional political participation. Using the data of the European Social Survey Round 6 for 25 European democracies I test these assertions. While I do find critical citizens to be more supportive of direct democracy, support for direct democracy is also strongly associated with having voted, having engaged in other forms of political activity and being politically interested. In analyses of various post-referendum surveys I find the same pattern to hold for actual participation in referendums. As the popularity and actual usage of direct democracy are greatest among those still participating direct democracy appears insufficient to bring the politically disengaged back into democratic politics.