Democratic Innovations with People with Disabilities: Learning through the Co-Creation of a Legislative Theatre Initiative in Lisbon

The deepening of political divides, often accompanied by widening socioeconomic cleavages and the further marginalisation of minorities, calls for a thorough examination of the role democratic innovations can play in fostering more inclusive and just decision-making processes. This paper focuses on people with disabilities as one of the subordinated groups that too often remain invisible and unheard in democratic governance. Although democratic innovations are expected to expand the boundaries of political participation and citizen control, little research has examined how people with disabilities can effectively take centre stage in such practices. I therefore offer an original contribution to understanding how arts-based democratic innovations can raise awareness of disability rights and potentially influence policy change. Drawing on research conducted in Lisbon over the past year and a half with artists with disabilities, I analyse the co-creation of a Legislative Theatre initiative that, in late 2025, brought together more than 170 participants to propose changes to national and local policies. I aim to unpack the ways in which this democratic innovation was conceived, designed, and implemented through an intensive co-creative process involving artists, activists, academics, and institutions. Ultimately, I argue that Legislative Theatre constitutes a powerful tool for bringing to the stage - and thus to public and political attention - key issues for democracy.