"Our systems of governance are outdated"

11. November 2024
Marjan Ehsassi

The presidential and parliamentary elections in the United States on 5 November 2024 are a setback for democracy for many people. Marjan Horst Ehsassi is working in the US to promote more democracy through citizens' assemblies. We asked her how she views the current situation and what she thinks needs to happen now.

Ms Ehsassi, the US presidential election on 5 November once again showed how polarised and divided the country is. What do you think are the causes of this?

Marjan Ehsassi: I don't think we need an election to remind us of just how polarized we are! In fact, there is an important argument to be made that this one dimensional focus on elections and our "winner takes all" attitude exacerbates this pervasive problem.

So what's next? I hope that the election is a wake up call for political parties, campaign managers, our elected representatives and, frankly, democracy experts and philanthropic leaders that neither our messaging nor our traditional community-driven conversations or bridge building programs are working.

„Democracy is not working“

Calls to protect our democratic institutions while real do not resonate with much for this country. Our democracy is not working for them. They are disconnected from existing institutions and the status quo is not what they want.

In my recent book, Activated Citizenship, I introduce the term Voice Insecurity. Americans across this country do not have adequate access to consequential voice and meaningful input in government decisions. We need to offer a roadmap for a new democratic model: one that creates space for citizens to solve public problems in partnership with government and promotes a democratic culture that is responsive and inclusive of all voices.

Causes of polarization

I am not an expert on polarization but some of the causes include our inability to engage in difficult conversations, dirth of balanced and objective sources of information, lack of meaningful diversity in our communities, our "bubbles" or echo chambers (online and offline) and wide-spread isolation. All of this is intensified when the government is more and more distant from the people and elected representatives do very little to engage with constituents in non-traditional ways.

For years, all of us, advocates of Citizens' Assemblies have called for different solutions to this pervasive problem. As you well know, and I document this in Activated Citizenship, Citizens' Assemblies bring people of different backgrounds together and through collective learning, deliberation and the writing of policy proposals, they develop strong bonds and a deep sense of community emerges.

„A great sense of belonging“

Assembly members' relationship with government changes, they feel a great sense of belonging and continue to engage with each other. We are beginning to experiment with Citizens' Assemblies in the US but elected representatives, donors and even participation experts and practitioners continue to be hesitant.

As a concerned American, I will add that we are experts at diagnosing problems but not as strong on finding solutions. There is a real lack of vision and imagination in democratic innovations. With respect to Citizens' Assemblies, there is some growing interesst but generally reluctance to test these new approaches. This is especially confusing when elections and the old ways of engaging people are clearly not yielding the kind of results our democracy needs. In the meantime, the problem of polarization continues to worsen without any real investment in new methods and approaches such as citizens' assemblies.

„Averting hell“

I am often reminded of David Van Reybrouk's comment that advocates of Citizens' Assemblies, "are not trying to create heaven but that we are averting hell." Regardless of who is in the White House, FIDE - North America will continue to raise awareness, build capacity and advocate for a more inclusive and responsive democracy at different levels of government.

Question: What do you think should be done about this seemingly ominous development?

Ehsassi: We need to take this seemingly ominous development seriously and engage in self-reflection. And, we need to stop diagnosing the problem and, instead, begin to listen and learn from those of us who have seen other approaches used abroad and test with these methods.

It is critical that we recognize the deep and pervasive problem of voice insecurity in the United States. I don't agree with suggestions that people are turning their backs on democracy as a principle or as a way of being governed. Rather, people do not feel heard and are deeply dissatisfied with the way that we do democracy.

„Our systems of governance are outdated“

Our systems of governance are outdated and the engagement methods used by our elected representatives to seek input from constituents is not inclusive, responsive to their preferences, informative or meaningful.

As Thomas Jefferson reminds us, "I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of society, but the people themselves; and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion by education."

Citizens' Assemblies present a balm

Over the next few years, FIDE - North America will work with cities across the United States. Our goal is to present Mayors, City Managers and governors with thoughtful plans to change the way that American citizens are involved in policy reform and government decision making. We must learn from democratic innovators across Ireland, France, Belgium, Germany and other countries, use tools such as sortition (democratic lottery) and platforms like citizens' assemblies.

While not a panacea, when designed and implemented well, Citizens' Assemblies present a balm and a strong complement to enhance learning, create community, belonging and rebuild mutual trust.

Question: Like Germany, the US has had experience with citizens' councils for some time. What good examples are there and what can we learn from them?

Ehsassi: We don't have the same extensive experience as Germany does. The United States has some experience with sortition-based processes. For instance, Healthy Democracy has a long history of running sortition-based processes such as Oregon's Citizens' Initiative Reviews and has recently implemented Citizens' Assemblies in Petaluma and Bend. We are beginning to see an increase in interest in Citizens' Assemblies and FIDE - North America is working with cities across North America at various stages of decision making, design and implementation.

Experimentation and learning

It's a bit too early to describe strong examples in the United States as this new wave needs to mature. We must provide space and resources for experimentation and learning. There is a growing need for evidence-based data and we must engage in productive and honest conversations about what is working and what needs improvement in order to deliver impactful and effective Citizens' Assemblies.

Question: What is your vision for the future of democracy in the United States?

Ehsassi: The 2024 election demonstrates that our democracy is not working for the average american. Our systems of government are outdated and there is widespread frustration and voice insecurity. Most elected representatives and public managers that I speak to at the local, state or federal level acknowledge that their constituent outreach is not working and needs change.

So here are some thoughts about how to begin to renew our democracy over the next few years:

1. A Double Challenge: Confront and address a massive double challenge: On the one hand, it will be critical to take every measure to safeguard and protect our political institutions from the autocratic tendencies that will no doubt become more and more dominant over the next four years.

"An inspiring vision to renew our democracy"

On the other hand, it is imperative that we chart a path forward that presents an inspiring vision to renew our democracy. One that thinks beyond elections, creates partnership between citizens and government, and includes the voices of all Americans in policy reform and government decision making.

2. A New Orientation: Recognize that the public is an asset that needs to be fundamentally put back into public policy. In the words of a dear friend, mentor and the most experienced practitioner of citizens' assemblies in North America, Peter MacLeod, we must engage with the public not as a risk to be managed but as a resource that is valued.

This new orientation is broad and includes accelerating the number of Citizens' Assemblies. While FIDE - North America will not be working with the new administration, there's a lot we can do to engage people in Washington, DC. We will continue to advocate, build capacity and create learing opportunities with federal agencies and Congress.

Time to build a grassroots movement?

There are aslo opportunities to work more closely with Universities in ways that bring student voices to the fore in partnership with administration by using sortition-based models and deliberation. Finally, Belgium's experience with the G1000 movement has been on my mind quite a bit this week. Perhaps now is the time to build a grassroots movement and begin developing this concept.

3. A Wake Up Call for Funders: Philanthropy (donors, foundations et al) need to accept that previous programming needs to be complemented by layers of thick engagement: citizens' assemblies, deliberative democracy and sortition-based processes. We need to prioritize democratic renewal and create a funding mechanism that allows for experimentation, capacity building, learning, advocacy and the promotion of a responsive and inclusive democratic culture.

Invest in an agency to strengthen our own democracy

For this to become a reality, we need a real commitment and resources. It's time the US invest in an agency to strengthen our own democracy. We have more resources to strengthen democratic institutions abroad than we do in the United States. Maybe this made sense in the 1980s but not in 2024.

4. Widespread Communications and Piercing Mainstream Media: While I want to accelerate the number of Citizens' Assemblies across North America, our democratic problem is far deeper than this.

We are nearing the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Leading up to this major celebration, FIDE - North America invites like-minded organizations and mainstream media to collaborate on an expansive communications strategy that mobilizes citizens across the country in what it means to live in a democracy in 2025. What are our expectations of government? what are the responsibilites of elected representatives to engage with constituents? What does civic culture look like in a pluralistic society?

Marjan Horst Ehsassi is Executive Director of FIDE - North America, Strategic Director of the Democratic Action Fund, and serves on several boards including Healthy Democracy, the American Friends Service Committee, and the Meridian Council. She was one of four guarantors selected to the Collège des Garants of the French Citizens’ Convention on the End of Life (Convention Citoyenne sur la Fin de Vie) (2022-2023) and is on the Oversight Committee of G1000’s We Need To Talk Citizens’ Panel (2022-2023).