Less people think fair and free elections are essential, according to the Journal of Democracy
Less than half of those aged 50 and under said it was a necessity in the US
Similar trends were seen in Britain, Australia and other European countries
America’s ‘freedom’ rating slipped due to disillusionment in government, said experts
Older generations upheld their belief and described democracy as essential
Fewer people think it is essential to live in a democracy, according to expert analysis.
Researchers for the Journal of Democracy found that fewer than 50 per cent of Americans aged between 30 and 50 thought it was a necessity.
It was in sharp contrast to older generations of which 75 per cent said voting in free and fair elections was essential.
Returning to the question of approval for military rule, in 1995 only 6 per cent of rich young Americans (those born since 1970) believed that it would be a “good” thing for the army to take over; today, this view is held by 35 per cent of rich young Americans,’ a report published by the journal in July read.
Freedom House, which assesses how free the world’s nations by answering a string of questions drawn from the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, said the US was less free than in previous years.
It blamed the decrease on ‘flaws in the electoral system’.
‘The United States received a downward trend arrow because of the cumulative impact of flaws in the electoral system, a disturbing increase in the role of private money in election campaigns and the legislative process, legislative gridlock, the failure of the Obama administration to fulfill promises of enhanced government openness, and fresh evidence of racial discrimination and other dysfunctions in the criminal justice system,’ it said in its findings.
On the Freedom House scale, America received an aggregated score of 90. The best is 100.
Scandinavian countries and the small state of San Marino in northern Italy were the only nations to receive full marks.
Canada was given a score of 99 while the United Kingdom got 95.