E-forums: refreshing the Representative Relationship?

Among the countries in the European Union, different measures have been taken with the aim of vitalizing representative democracy. Especially at the local government level, various trials and reforms have been developed and implemented, such as reformation of local institutions, and introducing new forms of citizen participation and new roles for local politicians (Denters and Rose eds. 2005). Within this frame of democracy-oriented reforms, electronic democracy (e-democracy) is increasingly seen as a promising concept. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are viewed as important tools for invigorating local representative democracy. In other words, electronic and representative democracy are perceived as a potentially happy couple (Rodotà 1997; Hague and Loader 1999).