Foundations for Change: Rule of Law, Development, and Democratization

Abstract

This article advances the discussion of democratization as a complex process. Much of the democratization story focuses on wealth and how it advances or maintains liberalization. However, in this work, we demonstrate that the route to democracy and the route to wealth lie in the limitations on the state, specifically the rule of law which holds the state accountable as it creates a realm of sovereign space for man. We focus on the rule of law and evaluate how the lack of corruption in government and the enforcement of property rights impact wealth, the formation of civil society, and the corresponding shift of power structures that lead to democratization efforts. We analyze the hypothesized relationships through a nested analysis design, focusing on the developing world, where previous modernization theories have been less applicable, and explain how rule of law has an increasing impact on both development and democratization.