By John G. Matsusaka
Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2020.
Pp. xii, 298. $29.95 hardcover.
The resurgence of populism in recent years has generated a great deal of attention from academics and the media. Much of the discussion focuses on the potential explanations for the growing dissatisfaction with the political establishment and the impact of populism on democracies. Let the People Rule: How Direct Democracy Can Meet the Populist Challenge takes a somewhat different approach, instead acknowledging the populist view that government has increasingly drifted out of the hands of the people. John Matsusaka uses his extensive research experience regarding direct democracy to recommend a national referendum process in the United States to allow voters to participate directly in making important government decisions in order to counter democratic drift.
Matsusaka provides context to the populist argument by reviewing changes in government over the past century that have resulted in democratic drift. He then offers an extensive review of the use of direct democracy in practice before ultimately providing a framework for considering direct democracy in the United
