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Local Elections and Referenda
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Since the 1970s, political protests have been growing in many democracies and the demand for political participation has become obvious. The 1990s also saw more open, dialogue-oriented participatory instruments (century of participation). The proliferation of participatory instruments in the field of talk-centric deliberative democracies is called...
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... is an exception because its voter turnout at the local level is around 69 per cent, which is even higher than that of national elections. The comparative study shows that regarding the electoral turnout there is no significant relationship between countries with different electoral systems (list proportional or FPTP), directly elected mayors, different terms of office/mandate etc. (see Table 1). However, electoral turnout is relatively high in some Eastern European countries with notable variations (see Romania, Poland). ...Similar publications
Studies demonstrate that political trust and media use are important predictors of political participation. In this study, we leverage Asian Barometer Survey data on China to clarify how media use to obtain political information predicts how citizens participate in politics and whether political trust mediates these relationships. This study finds...
Citations
... Th ere are also other names for those forms of participation: appointed public volunteer boards (Dougherty and Easton 2011), local government citizen advisory bodies (NCDD 2013), citizen committees (Hendriks, Bolitho, and Foulkes 2013), citizen advisory boards (Kersting 2015;Nabatchi and Amsler 2014). Deliberative councils, and thematic committees also meet some characteristics of ACs (Mendonça 2008). ...
Advisory councils (ACs) are permanent opinion-giving bodies that are established by public authorities. Their members are recruited from among residents, local officials, and members of NGOs. The author argues that, apart from their opinion-giving function, ACs perform the role of citizen representatives. The research was based on the survey of AC members. Its results were analyzed by a theoretical framework informed by representation theory. It has been documented that the representation is significantly related to the AC type, and that the decisive factor of disparity between ACs is their mandatory vs. optional creation. The study also shows that there is strong relationship between the formal and substantial representation of AC members. However, mixed AC audience undermines traditional links of authorization and accountability, which calls for the reconsideration of the theoretical framework of studies on AC representation.
... There are more forms of direct democracy, such as direct election of mayors with direct recall procedure, youth councils and independent local political actors (Koprić & Klarić, 2015). 23 It is argued that these instruments "do not lead to binding decisions", because of the number of citizens who participate, which is relatively small, comparing with the elections (Kersting, 2015). 24 Ustav Republike Hrvatske (Narodne novine broj 56/1990, 135/1997, 8/1998, 113/2000, 124/2000, 28/2001, 41/2001, 55/2001, 76/2010, 85/2010, 5/2014). ...
... It can be seen that in most of the smaller districts with old village structures, mostly one list of candidates predominates. In 2001, Hesse introduced a new electoral system for the city council based on cumulative and panache voting (see Kersting 2004Kersting , 2015. In this case voters have as many votes as the number of councilors to be selected (2016 in Frankfurt 93). ...
The chapter discusses development of sub-municipal units (SMUs) in Poland after the 1990 decentralization reform. It discussed major elements of legal setting and variation of local policies toward SMUs. It stresses the difference in the position of SMUs in rural areas and in urban setting. The difference is related to two factors: (1) depth of historical traditions, (2) support of the central level (rural SMU receives support from the central budget through Village Fund, while such a support is absent in case of urban SMUs). Presently Polish SMUs play only marginal role in local politics and in provision of local public services, and their role in invigorating local democracy is also very limited. This chapter discusses factors behind the variation of the position of SMUs in different cities.
... It can be seen that in most of the smaller districts with old village structures, mostly one list of candidates predominates. In 2001, Hesse introduced a new electoral system for the city council based on cumulative and panache voting (see Kersting 2004Kersting , 2015. In this case voters have as many votes as the number of councilors to be selected (2016 in Frankfurt 93). ...
Today, Belgium counts one local government with sub-municipal units on its territory: Antwerp. Its nine SMUs—labelled districts—are operational from the 1st of January 2001 onwards in the fields of public affairs; youth, culture and sports policy; senior policy; traffic policy; public works; festivities; and communication. Over the years, the Antwerp city government has granted more autonomy to the districts, be it little by little. The chapter explores this historic and unique pathway towards sub-municipal decentralization, thus revealing why typical issues concerning the districts’ governing capacity, their finances and communication with the city centre still pop up today.
... It can be seen that in most of the smaller districts with old village structures, mostly one list of candidates predominates. In 2001, Hesse introduced a new electoral system for the city council based on cumulative and panache voting (see Kersting 2004Kersting , 2015. In this case voters have as many votes as the number of councilors to be selected (2016 in Frankfurt 93). ...
This chapter discusses the evolution of sub-municipal governance in Greece, which has been top-down conceptualized and implemented. Starting from big cities and the “participatory euphoria” of the eighties, sub-municipal institutions increased spectacularly by numbers with the two major waves of amalgamations in 1998 and 2010. Top-down conceived and imposed, initially differentiating big cities and rural areas, these institutions developed in a muddling through manner that created a complex situation. For the biggest part, sub-municipal institutions were supposed to facilitate comprehensive amalgamation reforms and to compensate for the loss of municipal independence. We argue that these institutions are trapped between identity politics and the politics of scale. Local authorities are reluctant to intra-municipal decentralization, often restricting sub-municipal entities to symbolisms. The lack of meaningful representation at the sub-municipal level is already leading to visible disintegration in many cases and to restrain from local politics. Therefore, a reform debate was initiated, but the final outcome remains an open question.
... It can be seen that in most of the smaller districts with old village structures, mostly one list of candidates predominates. In 2001, Hesse introduced a new electoral system for the city council based on cumulative and panache voting (see Kersting 2004Kersting , 2015. In this case voters have as many votes as the number of councilors to be selected (2016 in Frankfurt 93). ...
Sub-municipal units (SMUs) in Germany differ in German Länder. In Berlin, Hamburg and München Metropole Districts fulfill a number of quasi-municipal self-government rights and functions. They have their own budget and strong councils, as well as mayors. In all other Länder, most sub-municipal councils were subordinated under the municipal council and directly elected mayor heading the administration. SMUs were introduced as a kind of compensation with different territorial reforms in the 1970s. Although directly elected, sub-municipal councilors are weak, and their advisory role competes with other newly established advisory boards. Here the focus remains on traffic and town planning. Some sub-municipal councils fulfill smaller administrative functions and become more relevant and important in recent decentralization strategies of neighborhood development.
... It can be seen that in most of the smaller districts with old village structures, mostly one list of candidates predominates. In 2001, Hesse introduced a new electoral system for the city council based on cumulative and panache voting (see Kersting 2004Kersting , 2015. In this case voters have as many votes as the number of councilors to be selected (2016 in Frankfurt 93). ...
This book explores sub-municipal units’ (SMU) role in decision making, decentralized institutional innovation, social innovation and, in rural areas, service delivery. Focusing on fourteen European countries, the book examines the impact of political cultures, administrative traditions and local government systems on the functioning of the SMUs. An under-explored topic in the literature, this book provides a comprehensive, comparative European, thematically broad, descriptive book on sub-municipal governance.
... According to the participatory rhombus [1], political participation can be divided into four different political spheres: participation in representative democracy, direct democratic participation, deliberative participation and demonstrative participation (see fig. 1). Online and offline tools of political participation in the process of election monitoring and decision making briefly will be described using a model of participation with four spheres of engagement, see also detailed analysis [17], [18], [15], [1]. These diverse forms could be characterized by different intrinsic logics and specific participatory instruments in the online and offline avenues. ...
... Figure 1. Blended Democracy (Source: [1], [15], [17], [18]). ...
... Crowdmonitoring technologies or using Larry Diamond words "liberation technologies" is a powerful tool for participation, transparency and accountability [26], as well as capturing and communicating election observation data in the conduct of elections, especially in the representative sphere. Crowdmonitoring technique may be used for political decision-making at the local, national and regional level [1], [18], monitoring incidences of electoral integrity [3], [4], [27], [28] and reporting election violence and disasters [29], among others. In this paper crowdmonitoring entail the process of using ubiquity digital tools and invented space that empowered trained citizens as observers and reporters, and facilitated activities of observing, reporting and evaluating pre-election events. ...
In recent years, monitoring of elections witnessed citizen participation in observing and reporting incidences through ubiquitous communication technologies to improve election integrity. Digitally enabled citizen observers complement long tradition of established observers to assess the quality of electoral contests. Using participatory rhombus conceptual model and its concept of invented and invited spaces, the paper examines the ability of the crowdmonitors to observe, generate and communicate voter education and mobilization activities via Magpi software application in the 2015 Tanzanian general elections. Generated big election data from citizens’ observers were digitally mapped in the Uchaguzi Wetu 2015 crowdsourcing platform. However, international election observer reported that voter education activities were, not visible at all. In contrast, our analysis found voter education and mobilization of women, youth and people with disabilities to participate in the electoral process, conducted by electoral commission, civil society organizations and political parties were visible in rural, urban and metropolitan constituencies. Here it is argued that technology usage and invented space enhances crowdmonitoring or blended approach of online and offline instruments produce better observation results. This includes recognition of nonpartisan monitoring of electoral processes through digital participatory methods.
Balanced gender representation in local political life has been a subject of increasing interest to researchers. This paper, based on a unique database, analyses the representation of women in local representative and executive bodies and its impact on budget transparency (BT) in Croatian local governments. The panel analysis shows that a greater representation of women in local councils has a positive effect on the level of local government digital budgetary reporting. This is in line with gender literature settings and theories that explain BT, suggesting that the greater representation of women helps reduce information asymmetry, increase transparency, and promote government legitimacy. We do not find significant results in regard to women’s representation in local executive functions. A particularly indicative policy implication suggests the aim of increasing the gender balance in local political spheres, especially when deciding on good governance practices and fiscal disclosure requirements.
The chapter analyses the legal framework and the implementation of referendums in Africa and Northern Africa and compares francophone and Anglophone countries and national differences resulting from colonial structures. While citizen initiatives are rare in Africa, referendums have often used to support nation building (independence). However, presidential plebiscites of questionable democratic legitimacy are the norm and have been used to strengthen African authoritarian regimes. Only rarely have African referendums been used as an inclusive democratic instrument to strengthen democratization and finalize conflict resolution.
