Possibilities of Using Forms of "Diverse (Varied) Democracy" in the Conditions of Contemporary Russia: Constitutional Principles and Political Reality

Abstract

In the 21st century the place and role of different social institutions are changing significantly. An independent and self-sufficient person increasingly becomes a political actor and demands a broader right to participate both in public activities and specifically in making the most important decisions affecting him/her. In this connection, as well as in the conditions of active informatization and digitalization of all processes, there is a rapid increase in the volume of individual actions and an increase in the role of individual rationality, which can have both positive and negative consequences. Local self-government as an institution being the closest to citizens and able to better channel their needs is also undergoing transformation. In Russia, the aforesaid processes are taking place in a more complex and contradictory political and legal context, which requires special attention to all decisions taken on local self-government issues. The problems of local self-government are manifested especially acutely in connection with the poor understanding in the society of the role and place of this level of power in ensuring the optimal uniform quality of life in the territory of municipalities. The Constitution of the RF is currently a strong, although not free from contradictions, support of local self-government in our country. New trends in the development of local self-government in systems with a longer history are manifested in various forms which have received the name of "diverse" ( varied) democracy in the relevant studies. Its importance for the development of local democracy as a whole may become decisive in the near future.