Should a citizens' assembly complement the European Parliament?

doi:10.2870/9250462

2025

Book

BAUBÖCK, Rainer

; NICOLAÏDIS, Kalypso

(editor/s)

Florence : European University Institute, 2025EUI, RSC, Global Governance Programme, [GLOBALCIT]

Cite

BAUBÖCK, Rainer, NICOLAÏDIS, Kalypso (editor/s), BAUBÖCK, Rainer, NICOLAÏDIS, Kalypso, Should a citizens' assembly complement the European Parliament?, Florence : European University Institute, 2025EUI, RSC, Global Governance Programme, [GLOBALCIT] - https://hdl.handle.net/1814/78202

Retrieved from Cadmus, EUI Research Repository

In this GLOBALCIT forum debate, Kalypso Nicolaidis proposes a plan to create a European Citizens’ Assembly (ECA) with some major innovative features: the assembly should be permanent with rotating membership rather than devoted to a single issue for a limited period of time; it should be itinerant rather than located in Brussels, Strasbourg or Luxembourg; and it should have agenda-setting powers for the European Parliament that go beyond the consultative role of most national-level citizens’ assemblies. In her opening essay, Nicolaidis elaborates and defends these and several other construction principles for an ECA. 19 responses by 23 authors engage critically with Nicolaidis' ideas and discuss the general merits and limitations of citizens' assemblies selected by lot. The collection concludes with a rejoinder by Nicolaidis, in which she does not so much attempt to rebut objections as to further develop her proposal in the light of arguments advanced in the debate.

Table of Contents:

-- Preface -- Representing European Citizens: Why a Citizens’ Assembly Should Complement the European Parliament -- Why Citizens’ Assemblies should not have Decision-making Power -- Empowering European Citizens but Avoiding Illusionary Promises! -- Can a European Citizens’ Assembly Improve Political Equality and Overcome the Demoi-cratic Disconnect? -- Would a European Citizens’ Assembly Justify a Sense of Democratic Ownership? -- Democracy 3.0 in the 21st Century: The Case for a Permanent European Citizens’ Assembly -- Grounding ‘Democratic Innovations’ in Wider Decolonial Movements Within and Beyond EU Borders -- The Advantages and Perils of a Civil-society-led European Citizens’ Assembly -- How to Make Citizens’ Participation Successful: The Case for Citizens’ Panels on Key Commission Proposals -- Can a Complementary ECA Democratise European Democracy? -- The Two European Demoi: Authorizing EU Legislation and Deliberating on Affected Interests -- Perceptions and Practicalities of a Standing European Citizens’ Assembly -- Rotation, task Definition and an Increased Membership: An Alternative Imaginary for a Permanent ECA -- Connecting to publics: Challenges and possibilities for the European Citizens’ Assembly -- Enlarged Complementarity: How an ECA Should Relate to Other Institutions and Actors -- Why a European Citizens’ Assembly Should Replace Sortition with Liquid Democracy -- Rome Was Not Built in One Day, Neither Will a European Citizens’ Assembly -- Democratisation Through Europeanisation: the Case for a Permanent EU Citizens’ Assembly -- Mind the Gaps: Scaling up Digital Spaces to Increase Translocal Porousness in an ECA -- Rejoinder: A Permanent Citizens’ Assembly is not a Magic Wand for Europe. But…

Additional information:

Published online: March 2025

Cadmus permanent link: https://hdl.handle.net/1814/78202

Full-text via DOI: 10.2870/9250462

ISBN: 9789294666628

Series/Number: EUI; RSC; Global Governance Programme; [GLOBALCIT]

Publisher: European University Institute

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