Routinizing Online Democracy? The Institutionalization of Online Primaries in European Parties

This paper examines the institutionalization of online primaries within European political parties by proposing a multidimensional analytical framework that captures their regulatory, organizational, technological, and cultural-political foundations. Although online primaries have been increasingly adopted across Europe—particularly by new and movement-oriented parties—the extent to which they become stable, legitimate, and routinized varies significantly. The proposed framework identifies four core dimensions. The regulatory dimension assesses the degree to which online primaries are codified in party statutes or national regulations, and whether they follow standardized and legally recognized procedures. The organizational dimension captures their routinization within party structures, including regular use across electoral cycles, dedicated bodies responsible for administering digital votes, and stable resource allocation. The technological dimension focuses on the durability, security, and transparency of the digital infrastructures underpinning online primaries, including verifiability, auditability, and resilience to cyber threats. Finally, the cultural-political dimension evaluates the norms and expectations surrounding these processes, particularly the extent to which party elites, members, and the media perceive online primaries as legitimate mechanisms for candidate selection. Applying this framework to a comparative set of European political parties across Western and Eastern Europe the article shows that institutionalization remains uneven. While some parties have integrated online primaries into their internal democratic routines, others rely on ad-hoc or unstable platforms, reflecting weak technological or organizational foundations. The findings highlight the importance of moving beyond adoption alone and analysing the degree of institutional consolidation required for online primaries to contribute meaningfully to intra-party democracy in Europe.