This study analyses how "active democratic participation" is conceptualised by sixteen teacher educators from eight institutions of higher education across four Nordic countries and how these conceptualisations are translated into their own teaching. Teacher educators' strong adherence to a liberal discourse on democratic education may convey the impression that democratic participation is individual and optional and that forming opinions and voting are sufficient measures to uphold the democratic structures of society. This limits active democratic participation to the private sphere -- as opposed to collective, manifest political participation -- and may shape how student teachers present active democratic education in primary and secondary education.