Political Equality and Epistemic Constraints on Voting

The idea that voting procedures should be accessible to every citizen who wishes to participate is a fundamental principle of democracy. In recent years, however, this idea has been challenged. As part of a resurgent skepticism about the epistemic qualities of democracy, some political philosophers have argued that participation in voting practices should be made conditional, through specifically designed formal mechanisms or procedures, upon having a sufficient level of political competence. Call these mechanisms epistemic constraints on voting (ECV).