E-government has the potential to both transform how governments interact with citizens and increase transparency and accountability, but it also could be used to increase centralized control. While e-government initiatives like online services and regulations can help businesses, they do not necessarily make governments more democratic. For e-government to truly empower citizens, governments need to be willing to open up access to information and replace command-and-control structures with more transparency. However, digital divides and other challenges still exist in fully realizing e-government's democratic goals.