Woodrow Wilson’s ‘Democratism’ Leaves a Lasting Legacy

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.

By Stephen M. King
July 25, 2025

“Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For whom by himself can govern…” (I Kings 3:9 NLT)

In her new book, philosopher Emily Finley makes a compelling case that democracy has morphed into a pseudo-religious ideology labeled “democratism.” Democratism is “a hypothetical or ideal conception of democracy that is only tenuously connected to the actual historical desires of real popular majorities.” There is an insatiable global and international desire for democracy where the people’s “desired will” or the “popular will” is triumphantly conceived. Enlightenment thought instigated “scientific rationality” as the new religion; democratism describes a world mesmerized with “an imaginative vision of democracy that at times is almost indistinguishable from religious belief,” and is led by its “apostles and prophets…”

Rousseau was the principal prophet and his Social Contract the “holy writ.” Both laid the foundation for democratism. The basic tenets of democratism include but are not limited to a) elites directing the masses on how best to think and act civically and politically, b) use of rhetoric and propaganda as tools to command the attention of the populace, and c) preaching that man’s innate goodness is realized by “manipulating and altering institutions and circumstances.” Although Rousseau dramatized the spiritual understanding of democracy, history produced many converts including Thomas Jefferson and Woodrow Wilson, for example, who through their public positions of power and influence cast a sweeping vision of democracy and democratic rule while simultaneously directing the populace to adopt their vision, painting it as the singular hope for progress. Their influence continues to this today.

Wilson, a leading evangel for the reforms of the early 20th century Progressive Era, envisioned democracy through the lens of the Social Gospel. Disregarding the veracity of Augustine’s distinction between church and state in the City of God and laying aside the biblical doctrine of original sin, Wilson adopted the progressive teaching of “imminent salvation,” arguing the road to heaven wound through the politics and administration of policy reform. His philosophy of history, which was linked to “social Darwinism” much more than to his own Presbyterian roots, effectively argued that “…democracy… is a form of state life which is possible for a nation only in the adult age of its political development.” In other words, America is not the “product…of a social contract but (is) a living organism, having grown up and developed with the people constituting it.”

Wilson rejected Rousseau’s social contract, but he adopted Rousseau’s “general will,” believing “…the state is a great being that act(s) upon “a universal compulsory force,” moving and arranging each part in accordance with a singular vision.” Wilson did not abandon individualism, but his “mystical” conception of democracy placed the individual secondary to the uniting of the human will “in a common, transcendent cause…” For Wilson, the individual citizen “plays little to no role in governance,” but the primary duty of politics and administration was left to experts acting as ministers for generating and orchestrating the “greater good.”

Democratism was possible when leaders acted as spiritual agents for the culmination of the democratic eschaton. Following the ethos of the Social Gospel, Wilson recognized human failure was not because of man’s sinful nature but because of the corrupting influence of “social institutions.” The charismatic leader, whether political or administrative, leads by inspiring the people to greatness, presenting a vision that is not compulsive but creative, even compelling. The Wilsonian leader is not tied to a conservative or passive ideology of government, i.e., a republic, but to one that envisions greatness through change, not mediocrity through checks and balances. Citing Wilson, Finley writes, “Let him once win the admiration and confidence of the country, and no other single force can withstand him, no combination of forces will easily overpower him.” In Wilson’s democratized vision, the popular will is less a rational outcome and more a transcendental, even a “metaphysical,” reality. It is here that Finley rightly notes a paradox: the spiritual dynamism of the charismatic leader provides the necessary guidance for the popular will to materialize.

Democratism is a fully embodied ideological predisposition wrapped in the holy veil of social justice and tethered to a charismatic leader whose combination of political savvy, rhetorical acumen and administrative foresight presents a picture of democracy made in “their own image.” This presumption of messianic leadership aligns with Wilson’s proclamation in 1917, marking America’s entrance to WWI: “Woe be to the man or group of men that seeks to stand in our way in this day of high resolution when every principle we hold dearest is to be vindicated and made secure for the salvation of the nations.”

Citizens, not hubristic leaders, are the heart of democracy. Democracy flourishes when citizens engage diligently and purposefully, working cooperatively to further the interests of their communities. Governments govern best when they respect the worth of each person. The challenge is to discover how to balance all three.

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Author: Stephen M. King is Professor of Government at Regent University, Virginia Beach, VA. He teaches undergraduate courses in American politics, state and local government, and public policy, and has taught graduate courses in public policy analysis and ethical leadership and administration. He frequently publishes on the topics of ethics and public administration and leadership, and spirituality in the public workplace. He was President of the Hampton Roads Chapter of ASPA (AY24-25), and he served on the Advisory Council for SEIGov, ASPA. (AY21-24). His latest book is Ethical Public Leadership: Foundation, Organization, and Discovery (New York: Routledge, 2023). Contact him at [email protected].

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