Assistant Research Fellow

Ever since the ratification of the Maastricht Treaty, the problem of “democratic deficit＂ has received enormous attention among students of EU studies. The concept of democratic deficit has been highly disputed.; scholars and practitioners disagree not only about the nature but also the existence of the democratic deficit. This article assesses the different scholarly views on democratic deficit through an examination of the attitude and conduct of the political elites during the recent constitution making process. It shows that both in terms of the origin and the design of the constitution drafting process reflect the deep concerns of the European political elites with regard to the problem of democratic deficit. Moreover, the discourse surrounding these concerns indicates that an implicit consensus exists among the political elites that tackling the democratic deficit problems calls for measures that go beyond institutional reform to include the building of a European public sphere and a single European demos. The results of the French and Dutch referenda demonstrate that the elites ＇ efforts to engage the European people have not yet reached a satisfactory level, making it even more imperative to induce the emergence of a European public sphere and a single European demos