Repairing the Intermediation Disconnect: an Expert Assessment of the Measures to Reduce the Gap Between Citizens and Their Representatives

Growing public dissatisfaction with the functioning of representative democracy has spurred numerous initiatives to revitalize traditional forms of political intermediation, such as political parties and representative institutions. This dissatisfaction has been exacerbated by the "poly-crisis" that has impacted European democracies in the 21st century, fostering a heightened sense of uncertainty and a demand for alternative approaches. This paper comprehensively reviews measures implemented across European countries to revitalise party democracy and its representative institutions. The analysis focuses on key areas of innovation, encompassing three broad domains: the innovations to empower citizens (1), those to revitalise political parties (2), and those aimed to make parliaments more representative and trustworthy (3). Furthermore, this paper presents the design and preliminary findings of three Delphi studies conducted with a diverse pool of experts from various countries and backgrounds, to collectively assess the challenges to political intermediation and the effectiveness of the actions implemented in each of the above-mentioned domains. The findings of these studies offer valuable insights into the current state of political intermediation in Europe and provide a foundation for future research and policy recommendations.