Who Governs? Democracy and Power in an American City

by Robert A. Dahl

In this now-classic work, one of the most celebrated political scientists of the twentieth century offers a powerful interpretation of the location of political power in American urban communities. For this new edition, Robert A. Dahl has written a new Preface in which he reflects on Who Governs? more than four decades after its publication. And in a new Foreword, Douglas W. Rae offers an assessment of Dahl’s achievement in this, Dahl’s greatest and most influential book.

 

“Dahl is never dogmatic, and never imagines that the world stands still to accommodate either the democratic ideal or his own pluralistic theory of city politics. . . .Who Governs? is Dahl’s liveliest and most remarkable book.”―Douglas W. Rae, from the Foreword

 

From reviews of the first edition:

“A book that no one interested in politics can afford to ignore.”―Lewis A. Coser, Commentary

 

“Anyone seriously concerned with current systematic political theory or with urban politics should read Who Governs?”―Hugh Douglas Price, Political Science Quarterly

 

“A sophisticated and undogmatic treatise on democratic politics.”―Heinz Eulau, American Political Science Review

 

“Dahl has illuminated a central question in political science, the problem of how men can govern themselves in complex societies. . . . Who Governs? will become a classic.”―from the citation of the Woodrow Wilson Foundation Award

Genres: Politics, Political Science, Nonfiction, Sociology, American, History, Academic

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1961

About the author

Robert A. Dahl was one of the most influential political theorists of the twentieth century, best known for his foundational work on pluralist democracy and the concept of "polyarchy." A Sterling Professor of Political Science at Yale University, Dahl advanced empirical approaches to political science and reshaped understandings of democratic theory through both descriptive and normative lenses. He argued that political power in democracies is distributed among multiple interest groups rather than centralized in a single elite, a view he expounded in seminal works such as A Preface to Democratic Theory (1956) and Who Governs? (1961), the latter based on a case study of New Haven, Connecticut. His concept of polyarchy described modern representative democracies as systems characterized by key institutions like free elections, inclusive suffrage, and civil liberties.
Born in Inwood, Iowa, and raised in Skagway, Alaska, Dahl drew early insights from his experiences among working-class communities. After earning his undergraduate degree from the University of Washington, he completed his Ph.D. at Yale in 1940. He served in World War II as a reconnaissance platoon leader in Europe, earning a Bronze Star. After the war, he returned to Yale, where he taught for four decades and held leadership roles including department chair. Dahl also served as president of the American Political Science Association in 1966–67.
Throughout his career, Dahl explored the conditions and values essential to democratic governance. He articulated five criteria for evaluating democratic processes—effective participation, voting equality, enlightened understanding, control of the agenda, and inclusion. He also identified seven institutional requirements of polyarchy, such as elected officials, free and fair elections, and associational autonomy. In his later work, including Democracy and Its Critics (1989) and On Democracy (1998), he examined democracy’s advantages over other forms of governance, such as fostering political equality and safeguarding personal freedom.
Dahl remained critical of American political structures, particularly the U.S. Constitution, which he saw as undemocratic by contemporary standards. In How Democratic Is the American Constitution? (2001), he critiqued the framers’ limitations, while acknowledging the practical challenges of reform. He continued to address issues of political equality in On Political Equality (2006).
Dahl was the recipient of numerous honors, including two Woodrow Wilson Foundation Book Awards and the inaugural Johan Skytte Prize in Political Science. His legacy lives on in both theory and practice, with the American Political Science Association establishing the Robert A. Dahl Award in his honor. He passed away in 2014, leaving a lasting imprint on the study and practice of democracy.

Reviews

[Steven Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are a number of approaches toward explaining who has power in a community or some other political unit. Among these: elitism, pluralism, participatory democracy, representative democracy, technocracy, and so on. The basic text on pluralism? Robert Dahl’s case study of New Haven, CT, published first in 1961.

His argument was that, in this city, decision making power was divided among different groups. One set of groups was involved in, for instance, urban development. Another set in education policy within the city. Still another set of groups with respect to political nominations and elections. No single elite dominated across these issues. Hence, in his judgment, power was divided.

Elected officials, too, had a role to play. The city's mayor, Richard Lee, was at the head of an "executive-centered coalition."

The central importance of this case study is its elaboration of pluralism, the politics of competing centers of power, in action. As such, it remains a classic in the world of political science.

[Frank Stein · Rating 2 out of 5]

Seriously disappointing. This is supposed to be a classic of political science literature, wherein Dahl basically created the idea of a "plurastic society" with mulitiple power bases during his examination of New Haven in the 1950s. Although his argument is somewhat convincing, the book suffers from the classic political science curses. It spends too much time on airy pronouncements and questionable logic, extrapolates findings with little cause, and highlights a few surveys as if they provide irrefutable proof of its thesis. Sure, it seems as if lots of groups had influence and power in New Haven, but another political scientist could put a different spin on the exact same facts and make an equally convincing counterargument (as Donhoff did decades later using Dahl's own research).

[Izzy]

Realized a year into my IAPA major that I hate political science 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[Robert Wechsler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is deservedly a classic work of political science. The directness of Dahl’s language and vision of urban politics is what makes the book both important and very readable.

[Beau Martin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Status quo apologist

[William J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a study of the city governance of New Haven, Connecticut with the objective of determining who really governs. Research began in 1957 and the study concluded in 1959. I was nine years old when the study concluded! Of course this study is somewhat outdated however it is still worth the read by those who want to understand how politics works. As Professor Dahl states in Chapter 1, "In a political system where nearly every adult may vote but where knowledge, wealth, social position, access to officials, and other resources are unequally distributed, who actually governs?" (Dahl, p. 1). It is a very thorough study and is an excellent example of how to conduct a study. Using Urban Redevelopment and Public Education as main areas of research, the conclusion reached is that very few people influence how decisions are made and that the people who do influence those decisions are not necessarily the same individuals. Most citizens don't influence policy even through voting because many registered citizens don't vote or eligible voters even register. In his concluding chapter, Professor Dahl points out that, "As long as a citizen believes that democracy is the best political system, that the United States is a democracy, and that people in office can be trusted, by and large, to apply the abstract creed to specific areas issues of democratic theory and practice hotly discussed by political philosophers, or even publicists and columnists, are likely never to penetrate through the manifold barriers to abstract political thinking that are erected by the essentially apolitical culture in which he lives." (Dahl, p. 319). In other words we trust our elected officials to make the best decisions for all of society. I'm not sure we are there anymore!

[Charon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Antiquated nothing-burger.

A man with nothing to contribute spends 300 pages not doing it. The conclusion, if you can call it that, is essentially ‘things are complicated, nobody really knows but probably not a cabal’.

To give leniency to how myopic this book is because of its publish date would be a disservice to those with genuine prescience.

I do not support burning books but I will be donating this to my local landfill. I will let time decompose the physical remnants of this just like it did to the author’s thesis.

[Carolina Liechtenstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good basic fundamentals on voter demographics. Asks questions that needs to be asked again today. We should not allow ourselves to be blinded and afraid of the cancel culture. We should be honest and truthful. This book is that. It looks very closely at Nee Haven, CT, and it’s political process. It is very detailed and concise. If you consider running for office this is a book for you!

[Opossum · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very easy to read and interesting book. I appreciate how blunt and straightforward this book is in its focus on New Haven, Connecticut. I would recommend this book to a very small amount of people though because it is very specific and not really geared towards a mass audience, at all.

[Sydney]

Read for school

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

urban politics moment

[Hajira Imran · Rating 3 out of 5]

the political strata governs fr

[goddess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book that outlines the role of pluralism in American politics, the idea that government control can shift from different types of people/establishments. It follows the story of New Haven, CT in the 1950s and how a non-elite guy won mayor-ship and ultimately transformed parts of the community to be more vibrant and successful. Dahl also talks about various influences over policy-making and the political process.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

this one's for class...