The Uneasy Balance between Participation and Representation: Local Direct Democracy in the Czech Republic

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael L. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
The Czech Republic

Local referendum as a tool of direct participation of citizens in the decision-making of municipalities in the Czech Republic

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Filip Hampl
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Czech Republic ◽  
Voter Turnout ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Territorial Development ◽  
Development Environment ◽  
Correlation Relationship ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Binding Force ◽  
Direct Participation

The local referendum is the only tool of direct democracy in the Czech Republic, allowing citizens to decide on issues falling within the independent competence of municipalities directly. The aim of the paper is to assess the use, voter turnout, binding force, and thematic focus of local referenda as a tool of direct participation of citizens in the decision-making on local issues in the Czech municipalities with respect to their size defined by the population in the period 2006-2019. To fulfil the aim, descriptive statistics, binary logistic regression, classification analysis and correlation analysis have been employed. A total of 288 local referenda were held in the examined period, 193 of them in the municipalities up to 1,999 inhabitants. The results do not indicate a statistically significant relationship between the municipality size and the holding of referenda. On the other hand, the results show a weakly negative correlation relationship between the municipality size and the turnout (the binding force, respectively). The referenda focused on territorial development, environment, alternative sources of power and infrastructure predominate in the municipalities up to 4,999 inhabitants. The referenda on municipal property and public order prevail in the municipalities with 5,000 and more inhabitants.

scholarly journals How Far Can Citizens Influence the Decision-Making Process? Analysis of the Effectiveness of Referenda in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary in 1989–2015

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elżbieta Kużelewska
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Czech Republic ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Process Analysis ◽  
National Level ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Legislative Process ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Central European ◽  
Political Role

AbstractThis article explores the political role of a referendum in Central European countries, in particular in Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. In this article, political effectiveness is understood as a possibility to influence the decision-making process by citizens through a referendum. The transformation of political systems in Central European states from socialist/communist to democratic ones resulted in increasing interest in the notion of referendum, one of the common forms of direct democracy. However, most referenda have been abused for political purposes. The focus of this article is a referendum used at the national level. This study examines the use of a referendum in Central European states from 1989 to 2015. The database presents, country by country, the subject matter of voting, people’s participation and the results in order to show the citizens’ opportunity (or lack of it) to express their opinions and to contribute to policy-making by circumventing the standard legislative process. The aim of this paper is to analyze referenda in the selected countries and to verify two hypotheses. Firstly, the weak use of a referendum and a small size of complementation of representative democracy. Secondly, the citizens’ belief in a referendum as an element of communication and consultation between authorities and society.

Využití nástroje místního referenda v regionech České republiky v letech 2000–2020

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petr Bláha
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Regional Level ◽  
Descriptive Statistics ◽  
Capital City ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
The Individual

This paper aims to explain the use of the local referendum (as a tool of direct democracy) in the Czech Republic at the regional level. Using interregional comparison and descriptive statistics, the paper explains the evolution and the use of this tool and shows in which years this tool of direct democracy was used most often. More specifically, the paper tries to analyse while there have been significant changes in use of local referendum in long-term. Furthermore, the paper focuses on the degree of usage of referendums and development in individual years. On this basis, it shows whether there have been any developments on the effectiveness of the use of the local referendum in the context of the usage. Finally, the individual regions are compared, but not in the number of referendums carried out, but in the number of binding referendums. This shows that in some regions the local referendums are used much less, as they are usually not successful here (the capital city of Prague and the Liberec Region). The paper shows that the use of local referendum differs significantly from region to region, but in general it can be stated that usage of the referendum instrument is very effective. And if referendums in each region fails, they future use significantly decreases.

Föderalismus

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roland Sturm
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Electoral Politics ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Institutional Characteristics ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Research Results ◽  
The Third ◽  
Comparative Federalism ◽  
The Uk

This is the third, thoroughly revised edition of the textbook on federalism. Based on the latest research results, it helps students to learn about federalism by offering them questions to discuss and answer. Comparative federalism is analysed in detail in the chapters on federalism theory, the institutional characteristics of federalism (including Second Chambers), financial federalism, electoral politics, direct democracy and party systems. The book reflects on challenges to federalism, such as the coronavirus crisis, federalism reforms and threats of secession. It also discusses decentralisation in the UK, France, Poland and the Czech Republic as possible alternatives to deepening federalism.

scholarly journals Participation and Elements of Direct Democracy in the Czech Republic: Part II

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petr Jüptner ◽  
Pavla Valušová ◽  
Ilona Kruntorádová
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Political Discussion ◽  
Previous Issue ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Direct Election ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
Direct Elections

The present paper further elaborates on the text addressing the issue of direct democracy and direct elections in the Czech Republic, published in the previous issue of the journal. Besides the theoretical and methodological outputs, the first part contained the summary of data for local referenda and their original typology, collected from the authors’ own research. The submitted second part analyzes the factors affecting the validity and outcomes of local referenda, which primarily include a voter’s turnout. Furthermore, the second part, in particular, targets the analysis of a political discussion on the direct election of executive positions which structurally correlates with the issue of direct democracy. The conclusion is valid for both parts of the text and aims at the total assessment of the conception of direct democracy within the system of multi-level governance in the Czech Republic and its comparison with the prevailing approaches in other European countries.

scholarly journals Referendum in the Czech Republic and Slovakia

2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elżbieta Kużelewska
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Social System ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
Political Life ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
The Czech Republic ◽  
Political Economic

AbstractFor more than 80 years the Czechs and the Slovaks have been functioning within one political. economic and social system. Various political and economic circumstances resulted in the division of Czechoslovakia to the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Ever since the political systems of both countries became different. These various political systems inspired me to examine the people's participation in the political life of those countries.The aim of this paper is to analyse and compare the most common form of direct democracy -a referendum - in both the Czech and Slovak political systems. It will be compared on two levels. The first one will deal with general constitutional background of a referendum and its procedures, as well as with a comparison of regulations in the respective countries. The second one will concern the practice of referendum in the analysed countries.

scholarly journals Participation and Elements of Direct Democracy in the Czech Republic: Part I

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 644-658 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petr Jüptner ◽  
Pavla Valušová ◽  
Ilona Kruntorádová
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Direct Democracy ◽  
The Czech Republic
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