Civic participation

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P O L I T I C A L R E F O R M

Civic Engagement and the New Agenda for Democratic Reform

On his first full day in office,

President Barack Obama issued a

memorandum to all federal agen-

cies declaring that our government

should and must be participatory,

collaborative, and transparent.

This remarkable commitment from

the President of the United States

sent a wave of excitement through

the community of reformers who

have toiled for so long (often in

obscurity) to reform our demo-

cratic institutions and practices.

Last summer, forty-nine of these

advocates and scholars met in

Washington, D.C., to draw up an

agenda that answers the question,

What should the next generation of

American democracy look like?

Under the banner of “Strength-

ening our Nation’s Democracy,”

the conference designed a com-

prehensive platform to do just

that. With a willing partner in the

White House, this reform agenda

could easily serve as a road map

for meeting the president’s com-

mitment to transform the relation-

ship between the American people

and their government.

The Democratic Context

2008 was a year in which candi-

dates on all sides inspired voters

across the country. Not just Barack

Obama but also Hillary Clinton,

Ron Paul, Mike Huckabee, and

Sarah Palin galvanized the energy

of the American people. Millions

of new voters registered to vote,

including vast numbers of young

people who engaged in electoral

politics for the first time. People of

color also voted in previously

unseen numbers. These are posi-

tive signs that our democracy is

indeed dynamic and evolving.

This civic energy could not come

at a better time. In one public

opinion survey after another,

Americans have expressed feelings

of profound disconnection from

the officials and institutions that

govern in their name. A CBS

News/New York Times poll found

that only 17 percent of Americans

expect Washington to “do what is

right” most of the time, and only

34 percent believe that govern-

ment generally “cares about what

people like me think,” according

to a Pew Charitable Trusts poll.

Regardless of where people lean

on this or that particular issue,

most Americans are dismayed by

the heightened partisanship that

so often seems to block all possi-

bility of agreement or action. The

recent economic crisis has bred a

new round of cynicism.

Policy makers, for their part, find

it increasingly difficult to govern.

They describe a political process

defined by shallow media cover-

age, narrow-minded lobbying, and

a constant need for campaign

funds. Special-interest campaigns

and polls have become substi-

tutes—poor substitutes—for active

electoral participation, thoughtful

deliberation, and citizen input. In

this poisoned environment, it is all

but impossible for elected leaders

to find common ground and serve

the public interest.

There are plenty of reasons for the

breakdown of trust and civic

engagement as well as loss of

engagement in our political system

that we have seen in recent

decades. Revelations about cor-

ruption and lawbreaking involving

elected officials is part of it, but

there is also very good reason to

believe that it can be reversed.

Building on the recent surge in

political engagement, the partici-

pants in a summer 2008 meeting

believe the time has come to reen-

ergize and rebuild strong demo-

cratic practices.

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Building a Common Democratic

Agenda

The meeting involved representa-

tives from three strands of the U.S.

democracy movement: the election

reform community, the deliberative

democracy community, and those

who use community organizing

strategies to strengthen democ-

racy. Participants included D.C.-

based activists such as Eddie

Hailes of the Advancement Project,

democratic innovators such as

Carolyn Lukensmeyer of America-

Speaks, and future members of the

Obama administration, among

them Xavier de Souza Briggs of

MIT. The platform that emerged

from the conference includes some

proposals that focus on the elec-

tion process and others on a

broader concept of deliberative

democracy and new forms of com-

munity building.

Central to this work is the belief

that a diverse democracy agenda is

needed; we have to break out of

our silos and look broadly at

democratic practices. For much

of our history, two strands of dem-

ocratic ideals have evolved

together: on the one hand, repre-

sentative democracy in the form of

the right to vote; and on the other,

participatory democracy, where

people are involved directly in

making decisions that affect their

lives.

The policy ideas in this platform

seek to capture both of those

strands. They rest on a set of

shared convictions about what

democracy ought to mean. It

should not be a battle of contend-

ing factions and their moneyed

backers; the public should not be

satisfied to see one “side” get its

way. All Americans should expect

to benefit from the exercise of

their political rights; indeed, this

expectation creates the common

ground on which democracy is

built. By the same token, expert

knowledge cannot be enough to

meet our challenges. American

democracy works well in many

regards. But to make it more

responsive to modern society, we

need to seek out everyone’s vote,

voice, and participation.

We must eliminate barriers to vot-

ing, the most basic form of politi-

cal participation. We must build

an infrastructure of participation

and governance that offers a voice

for everyone in the policy-making

process. But we will have to do

more than just invite all people to

take part. A fully functioning

democracy requires steps to

ensure that the voices of the pow-

erful are not unduly elevated.

Public, open, and participatory

processes are essential. The con-

ference envisioned an America

that encourages the maximum

level of voter turnout, practices

people-centered governance, and

actively seeks and genuinely val-

ues everyone’s participation.

At the center of the conference

platform is a vision of the future of

our nation.

• The proportion of people voting

in America will increase, and

the electorate will be a diverse

and accurate representation of

our society as a whole.

• Public service, whether elected,

appointed, or voluntary, will be

open to all Americans and will

create a political system that is

a diverse and accurate represen-

tation of our whole society.

• We will change how Americans

view their government, and how

government views the people.

No longer will ordinary people

be merely consumers of govern-

ment services. We will be active

partners with government and

with one another.

• The routines of our public life

will change. It will be a regular

occurrence for officials and the

public to listen to each other,

and for citizens to find ways to

work together.

• The quality of our lives will be

improved, as the people know

their voices are heard and as

the partisan fragmentation of

society lessens.

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• This newly empowered defini-

tion of what it means to “have

a voice” will make it more likely

that many people, of all back-

grounds, will use their voices

and energies to make a tangible

difference.

Finally, the agenda operates from

the faith that all residents have

meaningful ways to be informed,

engaged, and heard, and when all

voices are valued, neighborhoods

and communities will be stronger

and government will make better

decisions. The full agenda can

be found on the Websites of the

three sponsoring organizations,

Demos, Everyday Democracy, and

AmericaSpeaks. Three policy pro-

posals frame the agenda.

A Champion of Civic Engagement in

the White House

One of the most important things

President Obama can do to foster

greater civic and electoral partici-

pation at the federal level is create

a champion for civic engagement

in the White House who advocates

for the vital role that the public

should play in our nation’s gover-

nance. This champion would serve

as a focal point of governmentwide

commitment and bring leadership

to a range of federal agencies.

Hopefully, the president’s Open

Government Directive will spur

just such a champion.

Related steps the administration

should take include:

• Create an interagency network

to supply agencies and staff

with capacity-building services

such as technical support and

training in how to engage citi-

zens in policy making.

• Charge federal agencies to

coordinate with one another

and with state and local deci-

sion makers on behalf of criti-

cal local and regional goals.

• Take inventory of existing pub-

lic engagement practices, in

order to assess what works and

what’s needed.

• Direct new political appointees

to become familiar with the

administration’s policy in re-

gard to the importance of civic

participation, and with their re-

spective agencies’ civic engage-

ment activities.

• Promote leadership on an

aggressive electoral reform

agenda.

National Discussions: Millions of

Voices at the Table

A healthy democracy needs the

capacity to involve its citizens in

key decisions. Government cannot

be left to leaders, experts, and pun-

dits with the public weighing in

only on Election Day. People from

all walks of life should be encour-

aged to wrestle with tough ques-

tions, seek common ground, and

develop and articulate their views.

Policy makers should see them-

selves as part of this larger process,

not as a world unto themselves.

President Obama should signal a

new kind of governance by calling

on the American people to take part

in a series of national discussions,

each engaging one million Ameri-

cans or more, on the issues of high-

est public concern, such as the

economy, health care, foreign pol-

icy, energy, and climate change. The

national discussions will furnish

policy makers with an independent,

nonpartisan means of assessing the

informed opinions and collective

priorities of the American people

and forge a stronger link between

Americans and their government.

This initiative could be overseen by

a nonpartisan working group of cit-

izens appointed by the president

and the majority and minority lead-

ership of the House and Senate.

The White House’s new champion

for civic engagement should man-

age the national discussion and

ensure a strong link to the presi-

dent and federal agencies.

A Legislative Agenda for Demo-

cratic Reform

The president should also work

with Congress to pass an aggres-

sive set of policy reforms to

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enhance democratic participation,

electoral and otherwise.

In the electoral arena, these

reforms should include:

• Committing to universal voter

registration for all eligible

Americans, beginning with

Election Day registration for all

Americans, and full implemen-

tation of the National Voter

Registration Act.

• Passing meaningful public

financing of congressional elec-

tions, and restoring meaningful

public financing of presidential

elections.

• Adopting a broad set of voter-

convenience measures such as

early voting and vote by mail.

• Developing national standards

for election administration.

• Supporting ranked-choice bal-

lots and instant-runoff elec-

tions as another way to protect

voters from unrepresentative

outcomes and ensure a fair

reflection of voter sentiment.

In the broader democratic engage-

ment arena, these reforms should

include:

• Passing a Public Engagement

Act, to create constructive

incentives and requirements for

federal agencies to gain full

benefit from public engage-

ment activities, consultation,

and collaborative processes.

• Developing model legislation,

new measurement tools, and

technical assistance programs

for states and local govern-

ments to encourage and sup-

port their use of participatory

practices.

Finally, Congress needs to adopt a

series of policy reforms to encour-

age and support new residents of

America as they enter democratic

life. The agenda offers a series of

recommendations to encourage

greater access to naturalization

and voter registration. It also calls

for adequate funding for the 2010

census to make sure that new res-

idents are counted and their

voices are heard in policy making

and governance.

Looking Ahead

It remains to be seen how well

the new administration will live

up to its commitment to create a

more open and participatory gov-

ernment. Champions of participa-

tion in our federal agencies, though

encouraged by the Open Govern-

ment Directive, know that well-

intentioned initiatives from the

White House can often have unin-

tended consequences. Our nation’s

leaders are indeed using the right

words when they talk about the

need to empower the public and

transform the role that government

plays, but their faith in the

Internet’s potential for unlocking

civic participation may lead to a

missed opportunity for deeper,

more comprehensive reform.

The agenda that emerged from this

summer’s conference can serve as

an important road map for national

leaders to follow in creating a

stronger, healthier democracy. We

hope it will also represent the

beginning of a long and fruitful

conversation between the democ-

racy reform movement and our

federal government.

References CBS News/New York Times poll. “Amid Doubts About the Bailout Plan, Record Numbers Think the Country Is Headed in the Wrong Direction. October 10–13, 2008.” Oct. 14, 2008. Retrieved Mar. 30, 2009, from h t t p : / / w w w. c b s n e w s . c o m / s t o r i e s / 2008/10/14/opinion/polls/main452227 7.shtml.

Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. “Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987– 2007.” Mar. 22, 2007. Retrieved Mar. 30, 2009, from http://pewresearch.org/ pubs/434/trends-in-political-values- and-core-attitudes-1987–2007.

Stuart Comstock-Gay is the president and CEO of the Vermont Community Foundation. Joe Goldman is the vice president of citizen engagement of AmericaSpeaks.

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