In person icon The Political Economy of Democratic Innovation

Abstract

Since their inception, democratic innovations (DIs) have been touted as a means for addressing crises of democracy (Elstub and Escobar, 2019). By reconnecting citizens with political decision-making and empowering marginalised communities they aim to foster a more inclusive, responsive governance system. However, even as the urgency of realising these ambitions is sharpening in “diabolical times” of “polycrisis” (Bachtiger and Dryzek, 2024; Tooze, 2022) , the low levels of embeddedness of democratic innovations within social, political and economic contexts means that their capacity to deliver on these ambitions remains questionable (Bussu et al, 2022). Emerging empirical evidence casts doubt on their transformative potential and problematises simplified narratives on impact (Jacquet, Ryan and van der Does, 2024). Moreover, the field has been criticised for a “politicist” orientation which overlooks the causal force of non-political factors, especially those to do with economy and society (Fraser et al, 2024). Can democratic innovation serve to re-embed the economy within political systems and societies, or are structural forces dis-embedding capitalist economies from their socio-political moorings too powerful (Streeck, 2016)? The panel responds to this question by centring how democratic innovations both reflect and reconfigure socioeconomic systems. We pay close attention to the connection and coupling of democratic innovations between procedural and systemic levels, and to how they embed into socioeconomic contexts. This panel takes a broad perspective on democratic innovation, with contributions focusing on diverse participatory practices and contexts. It includes both theoretical and empirical contributions, using diverse approaches, to examine how democratic innovations interact with broader systems through a political economy lens. As well as insightful critique, the panel also presents alternative practices, ownership models and theoretical frameworks to imagine transformative democratic innovation for economies and societies. References Bachtiger, A. and Dryzek, J (2024). Deliberative Democracy for Diabolical Times. CUP Bussu, S. et al (2022). Embedding Participatory Governance. Critical Policy Studies. Vol, 16, (2): 133-45 Bua, A and Bussu, S. (2023). Reclaiming Participatory Governance: Social Movements and the Reinvention of Democratic Innovation. Routledge Escobar, O. and Elstub, S. (2019). Introduction to the Handbook of Democratic Innovation and Governance: The Field of Democratic Innovation, in Elstub, S. and Escobar, O. (eds) Handbook of Democratic Innovation and Governance. Edward Elgar Fraser, N. et al. (2024). Democracy, Participation and Capitalist Crisis: an Interview with Nancy Fraser. Democratic Theory, Vol 11, (2). Jacquet, V. and Ryan, M. Eds. (2024). The Impacts of Democratic Innovations. ECPR Press. Streeck, W. (2016). How Will Capitalism End? Verso Books Tooze, A. (2022). Defining Polycrisis: from Crisis Pictures to the Crisis Matrix, available at https://adamtooze.substack.com/p/chartbook-130-defining-polycrisis Vlahos et al, (2024). How to Democratise the Economy? Combine Democratic Theory and Critical Political Economy. Democratic Theory, Vol 11, (2).

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