This paper argues that as our society has become more unequal since the late 1970s, so too has our democracy. Democratic government is founded on the essential premise that the preferences of all citizens, no matter what their status or station, should count equally.That premise is under threat. Politics is increasingly the preserve of the more affluent. Rich and poor are becoming, quite literally, polls apart. The paper tries to do four things. First, it marshals the growing body of evidence about the rise in political inequality. Second, it offers an account of why the democratic left should be profoundly disturbed by these developments.Third, it suggests some possible explanations for why political inequality has risen, centred on the parallel growth in social inequality. Finally, it offers some modest proposals for what we can do about it.