Demotix/Michal Fludra. All rights reserved.

What to expect from European ballot boxes in 2013?

Real democracy still missing

Those of us who were actively working for a sustainable and democratic society in Iceland have always wondered when the window of opportunity opened by the 'pots and pans revolution' would close. Did the last elections bring an end to Iceland's radically democratic moment?

Bulgaria’s elections: change we disbelieve in

A mixed result offers some satisfaction to all of Bulgaria's largest parties. But signs of escape from the country's political and economic troubles are elusive, says Dimitar Bechev.

The Italian government's doomed quest for stability

When the only thing holding a coalition together is fear of the voters, instability is just around the corner. 

Azerbaijan in an election year

Ahead of a presidential election scheduled in October, a profile of Azerbaijan; its political and economic challenges, and some potential solutions.

The youngest face of Italy’s old politics: Enrico Letta’s “grand coalition”

Does Enrico Letta's newly formed government have what it takes to get Italy out of its dire situation, or is it nothing but a new layer of paint on the crumbling house of Italian politics?

When politics strike back: the end of the Icelandic constitutional experiment?

A wave of enthusiasm took Icelanders through the 2012 referendum after the 2008 crash, once the widely-praised 'crowd-sourced' constitution appeared to be within reach. But Icelanders’ hopes seem to be evaporating in the haze of this week-end's parliamentary elections.

How the Italian left ceased to exist

The election of the new President of the Republic ended up in a mess for the Democratic Party, devastating both its cohesion and political capital. Is this the end of the road for an united Italian left?

Italy wants change. But the time hasn't come yet

The last elections have shown that voters demand the beginning of a new political season. Unfortunately, what's happening in the aftermath is the exact opposite.

Italy 2013: collapse, revolution or renaissance?

It is a strange country that risks killing off Europe having been one of its founding and most reliable members. To move away from the sterile politics of the past twenty years, Italy has to come up with something new - but what?

The Bulgarian winter of protests

In the last week of February, after days of protests across the country, the Bulgarian government headed by Boyko Borisov resigned. What happened? What came after? And what comes next?

Italy's 'Perfect storm'

More than a week after the elections, the situation in Italy is as hazy as ever, with no obvious way out of the political deadlock.

The Italian puzzle - austerity, corruption, and the man next door

The chaos that followed the Italian elections might be the foretaste of bigger changes to come. But which ones?

And the winner is... Reflections on post-electoral politics in Italy

With no clear winner emerging out of the election, a new era of uncertainty opens for Italian politics. How can the country get out of the post-electoral impasse?

Sowing the seeds of an Italian spring

The Italian election resulted in a deadlock with no clear winner. But while Italy is stuck between politics as usual and a sterile protest vote, the seeds of a ‘liberal revolution’ have discretely been sown. Could this mark the beginning of an Italian spring?

Beppe Grillo's Five Star revolution

There is no telling what the outcome of today's remarkably uncertain Italian elections will be. But the real story might just be Beppe Grillo's Movimento 5 Stelle, which could become the third political force in the country, and set a model for others in Europe to follow.

The media in Europe

From Murdoch and Berlusconi to the new Hungarian media law, the media is the first theme of our new Joining the dots series.

Gem from our archive

Can Europe make it? Editors


Rosemary Bechler is Editor of openDemocracy


David Krivanek is Editor of Can Europe make it?


Francesca E.S. Montemaggi is Associate Editor of Can Europe make it?

Reinventing democracy in Europe

Ash Amin and Pep Subirós' June 2012 guest week on reinventing democracy in Europe.

Reclaiming democratic demands from the populists
JORDI VAQUER

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