Historically, the development of democracy has been closely tied to the rise of the modern state. More recently, though, this link between democracy and statehood has been questioned quite fundamentally. Authors such as John Dryzek, Jürgen Habermas or David Held argue that today we witness a transfer of political power from states to international organizations, which, in turn, requires a similar expansion of democratic procedures beyond the realm of the state. This paper, in contrast, argues that we should preserve and strengthen democracy at the level of states. I proceed in three steps: Firstly, I clarify the conceptual relation between democracy and statehood and show that democracy crucially depends upon state institutions. Secondly, I discuss the role of states in today's world and question the supposed transfer of power to international organizations. Thirdly, I discuss the implications of these arguments for the debate about the future of the European Union.
