Citizens’ Participation Using Sortition: A practical guide to using random selection to guarantee diverse democratic participation

Vergne, Antoine (2018) Citizens’ Participation Using Sortition: A practical guide to using random selection to guarantee diverse democratic participation. UNSPECIFIED.

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Abstract

Sortition is part of our everyday lives. If a deci- sion is to be unbiased and incorruptible as well as guarantee absolute equality of opportunity, it is often decided by random selection. In football, a coin toss determines which team will kick off the match, who chooses sides, and which team will start a penalty shoot-out. Match pairings for the tournaments of many sports are also drawn by lottery, and the results are also determined by pure chance when numbers are drawn for lotteries or bingo. However, random selection isn’t limited to the worlds of sports and games. For example, lotter- ies are used in many countries to select the lay judges and jurors involved in court proceedings. Randomly selected citizens are entrusted with considerable responsibility: They have to decide on the guilt or innocence of a defendant – and, in some legal systems, even on life or death. In antiquity and the Middle Ages, high offices in government and public administration were filled by sortition to preclude corruption and nepotism. Nowadays, random selection is an integral part of citizens’ participation processes. In recent years, citizens in Germany and other European countries have been brought together via sortition to work out proposals on constitutional issues, munici- pal reforms, urban development and aerospace projects. Political and administrative bodies are increasingly relying on this instrument in order to put participatory processes on a broad foun- dation, to involve all population groups as much as possible, and to thereby boost the quality and acceptance levels of the decisions. The aim of this guide is to provide guidance and assistance on how to plan processes of citizens’ participation. Based on the author’s and edi- tors’ many years of experience (see information on page 35), the guide provides an overview of what sortition is, which different processes are available, when which process is best suited, how to carry out the processes, and what they cost. Basics and practical tips are illustrated using suc- cessful examples from Germany and other European countries.

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