Citizens' initiatives in Europe : procedures and consequences of agenda-setting by citizens / edited by Maija Setälä, Academy Research Fellow, Department of Political Science, University of Turku, Finland and Theo Schiller, Emeritus Professor of Political Science, Department of Political Science, Philipps University, Marburg, Germany
Introduction; T. Schiller & M. Set̃l̃ -- PART I: PRACTICES OF FULL-SCALE INITIATIVES -- Switzerland: Citizens' Initiatives as a Measure to Control the Political Agenda; G. Lutz -- Initiatives in Liechtenstein -- Safety Valve in a Complex System of Government; W. Marxer -- An Electoral Tactic? Citizens' Initiatives in Post-Soviet Latvia; D. Auers -- PART II: SYSTEMS MIXING DIFFERENT TYPES OF INITIATIVES -- Institutions of Citizens' Political Participation in Italy: Crooked Forms, Hindered Institutionalization; P. Uleri -- Initiative Instruments in Germany ₆ Variations in Regional States; T. Schiller -- Citizens' Initiative in Hungary: An Additional Opportunity for Power-Sharing in an Extremely Majoritarian System; Z.T.P̀llinger -- Citizens' Initiative in Lithuania: Initiative Institutions and their Political Impact in a New Democracy; A. Krupavicius -- If It Works, Fine, If Not, So What? Initiatives in Slovakia; E.L̀₍tic -- PART III: PRACTICES OF AGENDA INITIATIVES -- The Austrian Agenda Initiative: An Instrument Dominated by Opposition Parties; K. Giese -- The Spanish Agenda Initiative and the Reform of its Legal Regime: A New Chance for Participatory Democracy?; V. Cuesta-L̤pez -- Popular Initiatives in Poland: Citizen Empowerment or Keeping Up Appearances?; A. Rytel-Warzocha -- Transnational 'Babystep': The European Citizens' Initiative; B. Kaufmann -- Comparative Findings; T. Schiller & M. Set̃l̃
Summary
The contributors to this edited volume analyze and compare different kinds of citizens' initiatives, including both full scale initiatives and agenda initiatives, in eleven European democracies and the EU. The book provides a comprehensive account of the practices of citizens' initiatives in each case, including a description of the historical background of the citizens' initiatives and the political system in which they operate. Particular attention is paid to the institutional design of citizens' initiatives which largely explains how they function in different political contexts. Citizens Initiatives in Europe sheds light on issues relevant to democracy, for example, how citizens' initiatives influence patterns of political agenda-setting in representative democracies and how they contribute to the aspirations of participatory democracy
