The growing prominence of deliberative mini-publics and their impact on democratic government

Trends in Mini-Publics Research: High Expectations, Mixed Findings, and Clear-Cut Challenges

“…Mini-publics are thus becoming a more common feature of democratic government in some Western democracies (e.g., Ireland, Belgium, and Scotland, among others). In some instances, they are even embedded into the democratic system (see Farrell et al 2022;Elstub et al 2021). Given their increasing relevance, three aspects become central: their composition (particularly regarding "pure" or mixed assemblies, with the participation of politicians), the role of institutional designs, and the challenges of scaling up outcomes from the small group to the broader society.…”

“…It is also argued that the participation of professional politicians adds epistemic value to the process, as said politicians bring their experience and administrative knowledge to bear while the minipublics process has the potential to increase trust in politics, politicians, political institutions, and the policy making and legislative process more broadly. Additionally, no evidence has shown politicians to dominate the discussions where they have participated (Farrell et al 2022). Thus, if the danger is having these benefits undermined by power asymmetries and elite domination, the specific design of the mini-public seems highly relevant: who, when, in which order, and for how long can deliberants speak?…”

“…Despite this and other empirical assessments of minipublics' influence on public opinion (see McGovern & Thorne 2021), there is scant evidence on what the general public knows and expects from mini-publics. Thus, some studies embrace the deliberative turn to promote institutionalized and permanent citizen assemblies (Farrell & Field 2022) or better connections between assemblies and policymaking through referenda or citizen-initiated referenda (Suiter et al 2020). Still, their benefits appear quite dependent on context.…”

“…Potential solutions for the lack of authorization and accountability come from what has been called a “systemic turn.” This basically refers to forms of embedding minipublics in the larger political system. Some options are to introduce a randomly-selected second chamber – a sort of permanent mini-public with a continually rotating membership – that would not be directly accountable in electoral terms, but which would have its decisions scrutinized and sanctioned or rejected by an elected chamber (Farrell & Field 2022). An example of this combination of elected bodies with mini-publics (although not permanent) is the Scottish Parliament’s Citizen Engagement Unit that in 2019 ran a Citizens’ Jury on land management and the natural environment for the Environment, Climate Change, and Land Reform Committee, and a series of Citizens’ Panels on the future of primary care for the Health and Sport Committee (Elstub et al 2021).…”

Democracy in Youth Participation Is Critical and Inclusive

“…Third, another important aspect of participation is the stimulus for healthy competition between the political elite and the government [12]. The government can show the public that there are other policies that are stagnant or even declining and make more sense than government policies [13].…”