E-Politics

Concept

E-politics is a form of direct democracy that uses information and communication technologies and strategies for political and governance processes, along with cause-related fundraising, community building, lobbying and organizing. It can be used for governance of local communities, nations and even function internationally.

Democratic actors and sectors in this context include governments, elected officials, the media, political organizations and citizens/voters.

Trajectory

As technology advances, and on the basis that its accessibility grows in line with current trends, the conduct of politics could increasingly be dominated by online and other technology-enabled forms of politics. It is a natural extension of consumer Web 2.0 into the political arena.

Media, research agencies, NGOs, pressure/ lobby groups and the political establishment itself all have a role to play here. With almost no restriction on the potential for the public to involve themselves in political processes (for example, the public could vote in immediate parallel with every parliamentary vote), politics has no choice but to engage in this way.

It may revive the democratic process, but also prompt debate about the nature of democracy itself, increasing pressure for constitutional reform and the creation of new outlets for participation in public life.

Principals of e-politics were successfully used in, and formed a central part of, the Obama presidential campaign. In other countries governments and political parties are following suit. The Dutch Prime Minister, for instance, experimented with a special Twitter hash tag that enabled citizens to directly ask him questions about budgetary matters. These questions were then answered by him personally in true Web 2.0 fashion: in an internet video message addressing the questions and the people who asked them.

Early in 2013 an interesting initiative commenced in Spain: the introduction of Partido Del Futuro. It is an experimental method that uses the Internet to build a democracy without intermediaries, replacing existing institutions that have become delegitimized in the minds of citizens.