Does illiberal democracy exist?

Abstract

While discussing illiberalism the focus of this chapter will be institutional. From this perspective the main object of illiberal critique is liberal democracy, which in my view is not merely a limit on the public power of the majority, but also presup- poses rule of law, checks and balances, and guaranteed fundamental rights. This means that there is no democracy without liberalism, and there also cannot be liberal rights without democracy. In this respect, there is no such a thing as an ‘illiberal or anti-liberal democracy’.