Joseph Schumpeter’s theory of democracy as a method of selection of political elites remains one of the most influential, as well as most controversial reference points in contemporary debates concerning democracy. The article argues, however, that Schumpeter tries to create a misleading opposition between his own theory and the classical theory of democracy, the latter of which apparently espoused by utilitarians like Jeremy Bentham and James Mill. Firstly, most of the Schumpeter’s objections to the utilitarian account of democracy miss the mark. Secondly, there are similarities and lines of continuity between the theory of democracy which was espoused by classical utilitarianism and Schumpeter’s own theory. For instance, in classical utilitarianism one can find an evident elitist component which was later further emphasized by Schumpeter as a result of him modelling his account of democratic politics on the (oligopolic) market competition.
