Dilemmas of European Democracy : New Perspectives on Democratic Politics in the European Union

Reassesses the democratic quality of European integration Advances the understanding of what twenty-first century democracy in Europe is and what it can be Presents new perspectives on under-explored dilemmas related to specific aspects of democracy in the context of European integration and against the background of political shifts in Europe in recent decades Provides an alternative to 'grand theory' approaches to EU democracy and scholarly debates on the EU's 'democratic deficit' Includes chapters by leading scholars in the field, that supply new perspectives on democratic dilemmas from the point of view of in-depth engagements with key aspects of European democracy Bringing together leading and emerging scholars on European politics, this collection explores how dilemmas associated with key democratic concepts can be understood in relation to the EU. The book renews our understanding of EU democracy in ways that are more attentive to the multiple fault lines and cleavages that structure this political order. It focuses on a set of democratic dilemmas inherent to EU democracy, including representation, deliberation, sovereignty, citizenship, democratic contestation and market, to provide discussions on the specific tensions and trade-offs associated to a particular concept. The book engages in the theoretical groundwork necessary for assessing and analysing the specific dilemmas that arise when translating democratic concepts into concrete institutional designs in the European setting.