Least Democratic?

Question

By modern American standards, which of the following characteristics of early state constitutions seems LEAST democratic?

-bicameral legislatures

-limited terms of office

-age restrictions for voters and office holders

-property qualifications for voters

Im thinking its one of the last two..? What do you think?

Answer 1

Lisa, you may what to get your answers out of your high school text book...like you are suppose to. But to answer your question it would be the last one.

Answer 2

I would say the property qualifications for voters.  I have heard that described as a good idea, though, as the property owner is usually the one who will bear the brunt (tax wise) of decisions made by the government.

Answer 3

The answer is property qualifications for voters.  If property qualifications for voters were required, the less affluent would be totally unrepresented.  The US has a bicameral legislature.  Limited terms of office assures that we won't have a president in office for life, as in king.  We also have age restrictions for voters, otherwise children could vote.

"The Founding Fathers of the United States eschewed a formal aristocracy, but favored a bicameral legislature. As part of the Great Compromise between large states and small states, they invented a new rationale for bicameralism in which the upper house would have states represented equally, and the lower house would have them represented by population."

Answer 4

it's either the property qualifications or the bicameral legislatures.

I'd actually say the bicameral legislatures, because in a true Democracy, the legislature is the entire body of voters, and there is no separate legislature.