Contemporary notions of democracy undoubtedly evolved from their foundations in ancient Greece and Rome. However, despite noble intentions, democracy in Greece and Rome was neither just, equitable nor representative. These civilizations practiced direct democracy, whereby all eligible citizens actively engaged in democratic processes and gathered to discuss state issues (Hirst 2012). The influential Greek historian Herodotus observed that, in such a system, “there exists, first, that most splendid of virtues, equality before the law” (Herodotus and Thucydides et.al 1955 p.223). However, in both Greek and Roman democracy, true equality was virtually non-existent. Therefore, only native men over the age of 18 could vote; women, slaves, children and immigrants were excluded. Thus, in Athens in the 4th century BC only about 45,000 people out of an estimated population of 300,000 had the right to vote (Patterson 2006). Similarly, estimates suggest that at the height of the Roman Empire only 30,000–70,000 Romans, the maximum capacity of the Forum, could have voted – a relatively insignificant proportion of the total Roman population (Patterson 2006). Furthermore, members of the social elite were given preferential entry into the Forum, as they were considered more politically astute (Patterson 2006). This indicates that, although public meetings and voting played a central role in Roman life, “those involved were probably a select and unrepresentative body” (Patterson 2006 pp. 355). Thus, the role of the common people was largely a facade and represented a selection among, and validation of, members of the social elite. Evidently, Greek and Roman democracy did not care about a “liberal center.” of paper…democracy strove to provide a just and equitable political system, in practice, these systems were inherently flawed. Therefore, despite their intentions, the Greek and Roman democracies were neither just, equal nor representative. Works CitedBallot, RK 2009, A companion to Greek and Roman Political Thought, Wiley-Blackwell, Malden, MA.Herodotus, Thucydides, Rawlinson, G. & Crawley, R 1955, The History of Herodotus, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Chicago.Hirst, J 2012, The Shortest History of Europe, Black Inc., Collingwood, Victoria, pp. 68-71.Howard, G 2010, 'Equality in Athens: Between Lot and Specialization', viewed 1 April 2010. Patterson, J 2006 'The City of Rome' in Rosenstein, N & Morstein-Marx, R, A Companion to the Roman Republic Blackwell, Oxford, pp. 345-364.