Reality for a lot of us.
Democracy in Danger
Democracy is the best way to optimize individual freedom and happiness. Yet we must not forget that around the world several democratically elected leaders have engaged in determined and gruesome campaigns to limit opposition and to suppress contrary opinion. By both legal and illegal maneuvers, they managed to create systems of quasi-electoral processes that made certain they would be perpetually in power. I fear that current elected officials have begun a similar campaign that will result in giving them immeasurable advantage in retaining power forever.
Several initiatives point in that direction. Look at the so-called voting ID law. In reality, coming up with an ID should not be a major burden for the majority of voters. It is the other provisions in the law that are more worrisome. Although under litigation, additional language makes it much easier to challenge voters even by people who are not from same precinct as the voter and to make it difficult for college students to vote, while other provisions regarding same-day registration and early voting lean toward restricting voting access to those likely to vote as Democrats.
Other initiatives also help prevent equitable opportunity for the party out of power to have a competitive field. The perverse gerrymandering of voting districts has ensured, much more than ever, re-election by an overwhelming majority of Republicans. The argument that Democrats also did it is true, but to a lesser extent as they recently had not achieved such ironclad security in their districts.
Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/10/20/4250415/democracy-in-danger-slide-toward.html?sp=/99/108/#storylink=cpy