Participation and democracy

Over the last couple of weeks while checking my tweeter feed, I noticed the same article from the UNDP pop-up twice on Democracy Saturdays; an article that deals with social diversity and democracy.  It was a particular sub-topic barely mention that caught my eye: participation.  Me and a couple of my colleagues have spent a number of hours over the last couple of months (arguably more than just a couple) demystifying the adoption and outcomes of citizen participation.  What caught my eye in this article is its focus on elections, but also its omission of other forms of possible participation in democratic institutions.  The author suggested that the

“…forum hosted by UNDP will focus on maximizing participation from different backgrounds in elections and decision-making.”

however the rest of the article focuses on electoral participation.  The assumption here is that casting a vote in an election that is free and fair will in fact be translated into maximized decision-making.  And this assumption is warranted if the elected representatives do indeed effectively capture the wishes of constituents and are able through their actions to bring those wishes to fruition.  Then we truly do have improved and maximized decision-making.

The article talks about the flourishing civil society and hints at its increased involvement in the democratic process, but neglects to discuss how this increased participation affects decision-making.  There is no contention that maximizing participation from different backgrounds in elections is desirable and indeed necessary.  But is this increased electoral participation sufficient for improving and maximizing decision-making?  Arguably looking at citizen involvement in other democratic institutions (not only elections) is warranted as a means to improved participation and decision-making.