MediaLab-Prado event in Madrid. December 2016. David Fernández/LM/Flickr. Some rights reserved.
We want real democracy and this involves opening the institutions' doors. Since the last municipal elections, many cities have focused on increasing citizen participation. The variety of processes and the desire to experiment has been extraordinary. New platforms based on Consul free participation software, such as Decide Madrid or Decidim Barcelona, have been replicated beyond our own borders, opening previously unimaginable possibilities for direct participation through electronic voting.
The latest citizens' initiatives binding vote through a secure voting process in Madrid is the final step in these processes, bringing these cities of change closer to countries like Switzerland where direct democracy has been established for years. In parallel dozens of votes in-person and through otherwise mixed methods have been carried out throughout the country. Some notable examples are A Porta Abierta in A Coruña, Pla d'Actuació Municipal in Barcelona and the most recent and innovative experience in Madrid: the launching of Foros Locales, the district spaces for local voting.
