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political participation

June 11, 2021

Polling booth, postal ballot or internet? The voting-mode preferences of Americans

Carolina Plescia Interest in postal voting has increased during the pandemic as a means to avoid in-person contact. But exactly who is choosing to vote by mail? Carolina Plescia, Semra Sevi and André Blais find that the biggest cleavage in US citizen preferences about how to vote is generational, not ideological Read more

June 1, 2021

How minipublics can help democracy – even if the wider public can’t take part

Lisa Van Dijk In representative democracies, many citizens feel disconnected from those who make political decisions on their behalf. In extreme cases, they may even refuse to accept democratic decisions and contemplate alternative forms of government. Lisa van Dijk, James Pow and Sofie Marien test the effectiveness of ‘minipublics’ to offset these problems Read more

May 28, 2021

In search of legitimacy: the Chilean road to a new constitution

Julieta Suárez-Cao Chile’s constitutional reform started after massive social protests in 2019. With gender parity, reserved seats for indigenous people, and a significant number of seats for independent delegates, Julieta Suarez-Cao argues that the country's assembly is on track to rebuild democratic legitimacy in the years to come Read more

May 24, 2021

How corruption drives political participation – and the people most likely to mobilise

Martín Portos The fight against corruption has been at the heart of recent mass protests across the world. But does corruption drive political participation, and if so, who is it mobilising? Research by Raffaele Bazurli and Martín Portos suggests – counterintuitively – that people with less education are the most likely to rise up Read more

March 29, 2021

The Conference on the Future of Europe lacks a clear conception of democratic authorisation

Markus Patberg The Conference on the Future of Europe aims to produce proposals for EU ureform in a participatory manner. Yet, writes Markus Patberg, its setup suggests top-down steering, and lacks a clear conception of democratic authorisation. The envisaged forms of broad but unsystematic inclusion might even be counterproductive to the declared goal of empowering citizens Read more

March 26, 2021

After the 2021 Dutch general election, can Volt become a genuine pan-European force?

Benjamin Leruth A new European party, Volt, debuted in the Tweede Kamer following last week's Dutch elections. The party faces challenges, but it could play a role in domestic political landscapes throughout Europe, writes Benjamin Leruth Read more

March 10, 2021

To understand the relative absence of disabled people in politics we need to look beyond stereotypes

Stefanie Reher Disabled people are underrepresented in elected office, so it's unlikely that public policy will reflect the interests of the 15% of the population living with disability. Stefanie Reher argues that we need to better understand the causes, and consequences, of such low representation Read more

January 26, 2021

The so-called crisis of political parties is, in fact, evidence of their adaption. Here's why

Elisa Volpi Political distrust and reduced party identification suggest that political parties are in crisis. Elisa Volpi argues that parties are not in terminal decline, but undergoing a process of adaptation Read more

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