List of figuresList of tablesForeword: on demand democracy?AcknowledgementsIntroduction: the spectre of direct democracyPart I Philosophy 1 The ideal of on demand direct democracyPart II Practice 2 A brief history of the practice and consequences of referendums 3 Referendums, nationalism and separatismPart III Regulation 4 The regulation of referendums: campaign spendingPart IV Improving direct democracy 5 Referendums and deliberative democracy 6 The recall as a mechanism for increasing accountability: an American case study 7 Citizen-initiated referendums: an empirical assessmentConclusion: bringing it all back homeIndex