An Economic Theory of Democracy

Anthony Downs (1930-2021) was a leading economic theorist, academic, and advisory consultant active in the second half of the 20th century. He was a prolific scholar, publishing 24 books and more than 500 academic papers, applying economic theory to numerous social topics in public policy, focusing on attempts to find new solutions and approaches to the functions of the modern state and society.

Downs was born into a middle-class, professional family and grew up in the Park Ridge suburb of Chicago. Downs studied for a BA in International Relations in at Carleton College, graduating in 1952. He went on to take his Masters and PhD in Economics from the Graduate School of Business in Stanford. While a student, he was elected president of the student body, an experience which he cited as an influence on his interest in democratic behavior and function. Downs went on to work as an economic consultant for numerous corporations and public institutions, including the RAND Corporation, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the White House. He was appointed to multiple government Advisory Committees. His most influential publication is An Economic Theory of Democracy, drawing on his position at the intersection of political and economic theory in the 1950s, and capturing the desire for a new post-war model for democratic behavior.

In the 1980s, Downs concentrated on housing policy—especially as an advocate of rent control and affordable housing—and on urban development and traffic management systems. His approach remained grounded in rational choice theory and his enthusiasm for democratic ideals is reflected by his focus on the needs of citizens and the effects of government decision-making. Downs wrote and spoke frankly on the ramifications of John Crow-era urban development and racial discrimination in public policy, foreseeing the rise of the Black civil rights movement. He challenged the attitude—prevalent in the white-led institutions of the time—that the conditions of the largely Black urban poor were due to inherent criminality of its inhabitants, arguing that social structures resulted—in some cases intentionally—in a distinctly unequal and unfair society. He consequently argued for government intervention to promote equality in the cities, particularly in the form of subsidized housing and guarantees of equal employment opportunities. Most famously, in 1967, he gave a searing speech to the all-white Commercial Club in Chicago—a prestigious members’ club—denouncing racial discrimination. One week later it admitted its first Black members.

Anthony Downs died in 2021 at the age of 90.