Abstract: Democracy is at risk in the United States and throughout the world due to the rise of authoritarian politics and declining popular support. Saving democracy demands a reconsideration of what democracy entails and a program of action to strengthen democratic institutions and practices. The article argues that a fundamental principle underlying democracy is that of equitable sharing, meaning that the benefits and detriments of social life must be fairly distributed among society's members. This is not happening now in the United States due to increasing inequality, an increasingly rigid social structure, and the undue political power of moneyed interests. The article advocates several reforms to counter these failings and strengthen American democracy: attacking gerrymandering through legislation and lawsuits at the state level now that the Supreme Court has refused to address the issue; mandating voting in elections as a civic duty of citizenship; enhancing equal educational opportunity through full federal financing of elementary and secondary education while leaving the administration of public schools to state and local authorities and through free and universal higher education for all who want it; and guaranteeing everyone willing and able to work a job at a living wage with the government as the employer of last resort.