Sort Articles

Political Representation

February 6, 2026

🎈 How public consultations can spark local innovation

Valesca Lima Valesca Lima argues that Irish local authorities tend to treat public participation as a formal administrative requirement. However, by moving beyond performative box-ticking and toward genuine co-design, we can bridge the trust gap. True engagement doesn't just legitimise decisions; it sparks the local innovation our cities desperately need Read more

January 12, 2026

🎈 How a student citizens' assembly in France is reshaping a Parisian university

Émilie Frenkiel A pioneering new deliberative democracy project invites university students, faculty and administrative staff to develop transformative measures to future-proof their institution against social and environmental challenges. Reintroducing deliberation into education and beyond, argues Émilie Frenkiel, could bridge the representative disconnect between citizens and institutions Read more

January 6, 2026

How well do politicians understand what matters to voters?

Chris Butler Politicians need to have a good understanding of which issues matters most to voters. Chris Butler reports from a recent survey of politicians that reveals that while they have a reasonable understanding of which issues matter, there are also common reasons why they make mistakes that have consequences for representation Read more

December 30, 2025

🎈 Why elected elites might reach for democratic innovations

Şule Yaylacı Elected politicians face rising mistrust, gridlock, and citizen disengagement. In their research, Şule Yaylaci, Edana Beauvais and Mark E. Warren show how democratic innovations can help elites tackle inclusion gaps, agenda-setting dilemmas, and decision-making deadlocks. The authors also highlight the risks of co-optation and 'democracy washing' Read more

December 22, 2025

🎈 Who elected Mark Rutte? Representation as political engagement

Dario Castiglione In his introductory piece for this series, Luca Verzichelli asked whether we can re-establish a connection between political institutions and citizens. Dario Castiglione suggests we can. But first, we must rethink democratic representation as a process of mutual engagement; then re-imagine its political practices and institutions Read more

December 19, 2025

🌈 Metapolitical digital wars on gender, race, and queer life

Silvia Díaz Fernández Research on digital violence must account for its metapolitical dimension. Silvia Díaz Fernández reveals how proponents of the far-right metapolitical project are shaping public discourse to fit their anti-democratic interests. Digital violence against women, racialised people and queer communities is all part of their strategy Read more

December 17, 2025

🎈 When do citizens tolerate democratic violations? Lessons from Hungary’s pandemic emergency

Zsófia Papp Zsófia Papp and Godfred Bonnah Nkansah show that during Covid-19, Hungarians judged the quality of democracy less by procedural norms and more by government performance. Their findings reveal when citizens in backsliding regimes accept violations of democratic standards – and when they refuse to compromise Read more

December 11, 2025

🎈 Youth and the new gender divide

Marco Improta Who benefits from feminism, and who loses from it? Marco Improta and Elisabetta Mannoni reveal an ideological gap between young men and women across Europe. This gap – strong in the UK, but absent in Norway – may relate to perceptions of the 'winners and losers' of feminism Read more

The Loop

Cutting-edge analysis showcasing the work of the political science discipline at its best.