Ocena demokratycznego ładu w myśli liberalizmu

In the contemporary outlook the convergence between liberal values and democratic order of state power election appears widely acknowledged. Democratic liberalism is the dominating tendency in the reflection about political systems of countries today. This is the result of a long debate among liberals, during which this standpoint was not unanimously accepted. The tension between individual liberty and the power of government is not invalidated simply by means of introduction of democratic procedure. The „people” can also be the tyrant. While some great liberals (Bentham, Guizot) believed that democracy leads to violation of individual liberties and chaos, others (Tocqueville, Mill) pointed out a possible „liberal democracy” if constitutional guarantees of a liberal rule of law are in place and government remains limited. This debate re-emerges in times of political and economic crisis.