Democratic Innovations in Europe - A Comparative Perspective

Abstract

Representative, established democracies are without doubt under pressure. To cope with these pressures most European states introduced democratic innovations to involve citizens and civil society into processes of political will-formation and decision-making. However, beside this general trend towards more participation there are tremendous variations and varieties. Different states attach priorities to different innovations, e.g., Denmark has a long tradition applying consensus-oriented procedures (e.g. consensus conferences), whereas Slovakia is testing referenda in a “long and winding road” (Lastic). However, an evaluation comparing democratic innovations in different European states is just starting. This session will gather political scientist who have started to fill this gap.

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