Democracy is so much a part of our Western lives that we could be forgiven for thinking it takes care of itself. But can we afford to take it for granted?In The Last Vote, Philip Coggan shows how, amid the turmoil of the financial crisis, high debt levels, and an ever-growing gap between the richest and the rest, the ultimate victim could be democracy itself. Revisiting the assumptions on which it is founded, he asks, what exactly is democracy? Why should we value it? And could we do any better?'A wake-up call . Coggan wants to rouse us.' Mark Mazower, Financial Times'His argument is that we have become simultaneously complacent and cynical about our political system and if we're not careful might end up with our paradise paved. Coggan puts his argument together logically and methodically.' David Aaronovitch, The Times'It is a book that addresses universal questions: why is democracy faltering and what can be done to improve how democratic systems function?' John Gray, New Statesman'An admirably unexaggerated and even-handed consideration of the troubles that are besetting Western democracies.' Douglas Murray, Literary Review.