>>507559884i do not think there is a single country where voting really counts. maybe on some small island in the middle of the ocean with a population of 10, some regional / local elections will have some effects on the people living there and if the population is small enough, democracy actually kind of exist as its obvious that if you talk about an issue with people you meet every day, and you meet most of the people on the island, then you just know that people actually support something.
in other words : when elections are meaningless, then democracy is working as intended.
If elections have any consequences, soft power is used by the people who rule from the shadows and who have their own democracy - the democracy of the 0.01 - the issues they agree upon. If the populace does not agree with their soft power, they will just send the tanks and kill you. The EU could probably cancel elections until you voted right and do that 4-5 times, but sooner or later it would just tell you what the right choice is and appoint you a president. If you do not like it, they will send some police to beat you into liking it. if you do not like that too, they will send the army to shoot you until you like it.