European Citizens’ Initiative in Central and Eastern European Countries – The Bumpy Road of Participatory Democracy in the EU

Around 75% of the signatures of support for European Citizens’ Initiatives come from five large EU member states: Germany, Italy, France, Spain and Poland. However, there is evidence that some of the smaller Central and Eastern European Countries have also actively used European Citizens’ Initiatives. For example, in Estonia more than 5% of all inhabitants have signed a statement of support for an ECI, compared to France where only 0.5% have done so. This paper analyzes the extent to which the European Citizens’ Initiative has been used in Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs), and in particular the type of organisational supporters and the campaigns which have attracted the most support in CEECs, and explore the reasons for these patterns. It will also explore whether the existence of a national citizens initiative instrument in a particular CEEC has any effect on the interest in an ECI in that member state, as well as assess the future of the ECI in a region facing a number of democratic challenges. Analysis of these national campaigns make it possible to examine the role of organisations and mechanisms ‘bridging’ territorial levels of contention and the circulation of narratives in countries with shorter traditions of civil rights, and in which trade unions have dominated the landscape of civil society organisations. The ECI apparatus, and the legacy of recent campaigns, provide a unique opportunity to analyse the circulation of narratives between different territorial levels.