The Impact of Social and Economic Structures and The Role of Political Elites in the Transition to Democracy

Abstract

Understanding democracy in its various intellectual, institutional, and political aspects has become essential for understanding fundamentally non-democratic political systems. The process of transition to democracy may begin primarily from the top, i.e., with a portion of the ruling elite, or from below, i.e., with social and political movements outside the power structure. The transition period itself is one of uncertainty and various possibilities. There is no meaningful relationship between revolution and democracy; on the contrary, revolutions have often led to the establishment of closed, non-competitive ideological systems. However, transitions from the top in the form of coups have often led to unstable and fragile democracies, while transitions from the top in the form of compromises between ruling elites have had significant consequences for the stability and strength of democracy. In theorizing about transitions to democracy, some thinkers, through class analysis, have considered the decisive role of certain classes in advancing or preventing democracy, while others have emphasized the importance of the role and composition of the ruling elite as a factor. The transition to democracy in the contemporary world has taken place within the general framework of the capitalist system, and such a system has coexisted with both non-democratic and democratic regimes. Therefore, discussing the relations of production and the transformation of the economic structure in the context of the transition to democracy is of great importance. The key point here is how to explain the transition to democracy based on class analysis or predict that democracy in its popular and political sense, despite the establishment of elections and civil liberties. The reflection of the dominance of the economic class remains the focus of discussion in criticism of democracy.