Is the Democratic Party (small-d) democratic Enough?

As the Democratic Party coalesces with near unanimity around the Harris-Walz ticket, many Republicans and other critics argue that the Democrats — who say that defending democracy is a top priority for the party — opted for a process of ascension that bypasses typical democratic norms and recent American political precedents. Never in American history has a party switched its candidates so late (Johnson announced he wasn’t running in March 1968, during the primaries). Biden was selected to lead the party in an uncontested process (save Dean Phillips) in which an overwhelming number of primary voters (though a small portion of all voters) picked him. Then, by many accounts due to strong pressure from “party insiders,” Biden stepped down, arguably disregarding the will of those primary voters. Absent of substantive competition between alternatives, Harris quickly rose to the top of the ticket. Does any of this pose a problem for American democracy? Will this unorthodox route to nomination cast further doubt upon the integrity of American democratic processes? Or, is it simply an error to think that political parties ought to exhibit democratic features because democracy should be vindicated in contests between political parties and not inside them?

The virtual portion of this event will end with the conclusion of the panel discussion at 1 PM. For those who are attending the event in person, the panel discussion will be livestreamed in the Ash Center Seminar Room 225 and there will be an optional post-event debrief with Archon Fung following the panel discussion from 1 PM – 1:30 PM.

This event will be part of Harvard Kennedy School’s Candid and Constructive Conversations series in the fall of 2024. The Candid and Constructive Conversations (CCC) Initiative provides HKS students, staff, and faculty consistent opportunities to learn and practice skills for constructive disagreement across differences with the goal that all members of our community feel heard and respected. As a school-wide initiative for the next generation of public servants and leaders, CCC programming aims to cultivate an environment of openness, humility, and respect to support the robust exchange of ideas within the HKS learning community. The in-person portion of this event is open to Harvard ID holders only and lunch will be catered.

Speakers include:

• Larry Lessig, Roy L. Furman Professor of Law and Leadership at Harvard Law School
• Elaine Kamarck, Senior fellow in Governance Studies and the Director of the Center for Effective Public Management at the Brookings Institute
• Dan Schlozman, Joseph and Bertha Bernstein Associate Professor
  Director of Graduate Studies at Johns Hopkins
  
• Archon Fung (moderator), Director of the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation and Winthrop Laflin McCormack Professor of Citizenship and Self-Government

About the Series

This webinar is part of the 2024 U.S. Election Webinar series sponsored by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation. As the United States prepares to head to the polls in November, this series will convene scholars and practitioners to discuss down-ballot issues, election administration, election security, voter trends, and more.

Event Details

Registration is required for this event using the link above. The in-person portion of this event is only open to Harvard ID holders. Please register using your Harvard email address.

The Ash Center encourages individuals with disabilities to participate in its events. Should you wish to enquire about an accommodation, please contact our events team at info@ash.harvard.edu prior to the event.

Additional questions? Email the Ash Center events team at info@ash.harvard.edu.