Global democracy refers to a variety of political arrangements that would expand the democratic principle beyond national boundaries by permitting individuals to participate in forming global rules, laws, and regulations. Proponents have advanced a range of intrinsic claims concerning the morally desirable nature of global democracy and its potential benefits, often anchored in cosmopolitanism (Erman 2012). Others place instrumental considerations at the forefront and argue that global democracy is required for epistemic, problem-solving, or justice-based reasons, for example, by providing legal legitimacy and increasing compliance with international agreements on climate change (Marchetti 2008).
The debates around global democracy have focused on two core issues. First, there are concerns that promoting democracy globally will bolster authoritarian governments in the short-term and undermine long-standing democracies, particularly in emerging markets. These concerns are fueled by evidence of democratic backsliding, growing restrictions on civil society and media in some places, and the increasing international influence of autocratic regimes.
Secondly, there is a concern that establishing global institutions that reduce sovereign powers to a degree commensurate with democratic decision-making will be difficult or impossible, as the drive of nation states to maximize their relative power in world politics and exploit relative differentials in material capabilities will inevitably trump efforts to establish Pareto optimal forms of cooperation (Archibugi and Held 1995). This criticism highlights how the drive for state sovereignty undercuts a key part of the cosmopolitan ideal upon which many proponents of global democracy are predicated.