Power Grab Before the Elections
In 2020, our fellow citizens will run for elected office. Each of these candidates wants your vote, which is a signal of your power as a political participant. But a vote puts them in office for years, so we should discuss what it means to have years-long influence on them and how they behave.
Our form of government is a republic, also known as representative democracy. The general public selects one of their members to act as their representative at a certain level. Then what? Is that the end of your involvement? How do they “represent” you without an ongoing relationship?
The way we think of representative democracy limits us. It limits our roles to “representative” and “those who are represented.” Are you satisfied with that?
There is a saying in civics, and this has become my core political philosophy: NOTHING ABOUT US WITHOUT US
For democracy to survive, we need to move from representative democracy to participatory democracy. NOTHING ABOUT US WITHOUT US claims a place in the process of deciding, in the argument, and in the solution. We are the government. We have a space, even if we were not elected. We have a space, even if we didn’t vote or can’t vote. We have a space in democracy because the very meaning of the word is “rule by the people.” Representative democracy does not mean we are shut out.
Candidates act like we have a choice in our vote, but they ignore us after the election. But we can exert more pressure on them during the campaign and flip the script. Here’s why.
Politicians are vulnerable to us before they get elected or reelected. They need our approval to take office, so they are willing to do things that they normally don’t do while “representing” us. This is our chance.
Our first best step to participatory democracy is to get a public commitment from candidates to actively work with the people. Form a coalition of organizations, influential residents, and everyday people and meet in person with every candidate multiple times with one goal: demand they publicly commit to establishing a formal resident engagement program.
Your elected officials represent you, so they should work with you to develop policy, get input, and improve the community. You don’t have to have all the details of how it would work. The important part is to get the commitment first, then build the program together. [Resource: Cities of Service lists dozens of methods that can be used at all levels of government.]
Make it clear every time. You serve us. If you commit publicly to working with us, we will support your campaign. There is no other path.
The resident engagement program should build from that moment. Get involved in the campaign to elect the person who committed to you. Let them get used to working with you as collaborators, and help that person get elected to office so that you can build ongoing power with your resident engagement program.
As a resident of your community, you should never support a political candidate who wants power without regard for their constituents. It is an honor to serve people. That honor should only be given to people who commit to democracy, to the messy democracy that has many voices, the democracy that lifts every voice.
In this form of democracy, both you and the elected representative acknowledge that our shared problems and opportunities require our shared efforts in forming and executing the solutions.
We all have power as individuals and as a group. Reclaiming our shared power means a government of, by, and for the people. Power means involvement. Power means organizing for what you want. Power means changing the conversation. Do not relinquish your voice to a representative. Voting is not where democracy ends.
NOTHING ABOUT US WITHOUT US
