Most people associate democracy with President Abraham Lincoln's famous "of the people, by the people, for the people"-famed Gettysburg address. What they are unaware of, is the fact that there exist several variants of democracy, which are categorized into two basic forms: (i) direct democracy, which involves direct and active participation of people, and (ii) representative democracy, in which elected representatives take decisions on the behalf of people. On the basis of how the system works, direct and representative democracies are further divided into different variants. For instance, there is the Athenian democracy―a system of direct democracy in which citizens vote to decide on legislation and bills. Then there is liberal democracy, a system of representative democracy in which the rights of the individual are given utmost importance. While Athenian democracy is one of the first-known systems in the world, liberal democracy is one of the most followed system. As its name suggests, liberal democracy brings together two different concepts: democracy and liberalism; the latter being a political philosophy advocating the freedom of an individual. The characteristic faith in an individual typical to this variant of democracy can be attributed to the belief that an individual is both, moral and rational. Among other things, liberal democracy is typically characterized by free and fair elections held on a regular basis to ensure that those in power are supported by a majority of the people. This is in stark contrast of illiberal or pseudo democracy, where elections do take place, but the citizens don't know who has the reins of power in his hands. The list of countries with liberal democracy is pretty lengthy, but at the same time, a little confusing as the concept thrives in these countries in various forms. Some countries have the presidential system in place, while others resort to the parliamentary system. Similarly, some of these countries are constitutional republics, while some are constitutional monarchies. The United States has a presidential system, wherein the executive branch, headed by the president, is separated from the legislative branch. Other examples of this form of government include Brazil, Myanmar, etc. On the other hand, countries like India and Australia have a parliamentary system, where the prime minister is a part of the legislative body. While the United States, Italy, France, and India are constitutional republics, where people elect the head of the state and other officials as their representatives, Japan, Spain, and Commonwealth realms, like the UK and Australia, are constitutional monarchies, a form of monarchy where the monarch exercises his power within the framework of the constitution. It might come across as an ideal political system, but as you can see, liberal democracy has had its fair share of criticism. Renowned German sociologist, Robert Michels, considered it a decorative form of oligarchy, where the power resides in the hands of a few. Others take it a notch further and call it bourgeois democracy, as they feel that the elected representatives only fight for the rights of the bourgeoisie, i.e., the middle class.