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Populism is the origin of the most famous dictatorships with Mussolini and Hitler.

• mc32 9y ago
  But was it undemocratic? I mean sometimes the people the hoi polloi democratically vote for governments you or I might disagree with --but those governments are not always undemocratic.
  • tigershark 9y ago
    Speaking about Mussolini at the beginning it was democratic, then it became a dictatorship starting with the march on Rome. Hitler took a similar path. And I can see the same thing happening in Venezuela with Chavez and Maduro. I don't know in detail the current situation in Poland to express an informed judgement, but as a rule of thumb populism in a democratic country may be the starting point of a dictatorship.
  • JauntTrooper 9y ago
    Yes, it was undemocratic. A democracy is more than just an election by majority rule. Almost all dictators hold elections. If an elected official cracks down on dissent and imprisons his or her rivals, the government is no longer democratic, even if it's done with the people's consent. True democracies require free and fair elections, protection of human rights, respect for pluralism, and equal treatment of all citizens under the law. These are the values shared by the 70+ democratic governments that govern nearly half of the world's population.