The Realization of the volonté générale in the Representative Democracy System from the Perspective of the

Deliberations of Raymond Carré de Malberg The article concerns the comparison of the idea volonté générale proposed by J.J. Rousseau with the political solutions put forward by R.C. Malberg. The constitutionalist from Strasburg noticed some flaws of the political system of the French Third Republic. The flaws were connected with the lack of the efficiency of the connected with the supremacy of the parliament executive power. In the opinion of the scientist, in the reality of representative democracy, voting is often dominated by the party discipline and some quantitative criteria. Such an approach may favor the misinterpretation of the volonté générale, which should be treated as a qualitative category focused on the realization of the common good. The solutions proposed by Malberg aimed at strengthening the institution of referendum. The institution fully expressed the sovereignty of the nation and created the basis for the legitimacy of the political and legal system.

Citizen Initiated Referendum and Polish Referendum Law

The main aim of this study is to respond to the call to give citizens the power to initiate a referendum in a binding way. The key question in this context is whether such a postulate should not be treated as just a typical manifestation of political populism and thus rejected, or whether it should be supported by recognizing the institution of a referendum initiated by the citizens as a factor conducive to a more complete implementation of the idea of democratic rule, without threatening the destabilization and dysfunctionality of the political system. The analysis carried out in the article proves that this institution cannot be discredited because it should be seen as a necessary element of the process of exercising power in a democratic state. The proposed legal regulation may be conducive to achieving such a role in Polish political practice.