Oh wow that sounds a lot like the modern day. Elections cost a lot now so you have to spend money to be elected a senator...
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By 44 BCE, the Senate had become an oligarchy. They were the 1% who owned the vast majority of the land. When they killed Caesar, they thought they were "saving democracy" (which they called Libertas).
However, to the average Roman in the street, Libertas just meant the freedom for the Senate to keep exploiting them. To the crowd, the "democratically elected" Senate was actually the "oppressive establishment."