Why Plato Hated Democratic Elections

And how to break the endless cycle

Ancient Greek philosophers like Socrates and Plato held deep reservations about democracy. They saw it as inherently flawed and doomed to descend into tyranny. 

But a later thinker saw a way to avoid this inevitable cycle. The Greek historian Polybius, writing 200 years after Plato, proposed a new system of government. 2,000 years later, his ideas still shape the lives of people across the world — especially Americans.

Let’s explore why democracy is flawed, what Polybius proposed to break the cycle of tyranny, and how it directly shaped the U.S. Constitution…