The Impact of Digital Platforms on Civic Engagement: The Case of Decide Madrid

Introduction. The article characterizes the Decide Madrid digital platform as a tool for implementing the principles of participatory and digital democracy at the municipal level. The purpose of the study is to determine the role of the platform in the development of civic participation and in the formation of mechanisms of interaction between the population and local authorities. The article examines the features of digital forms of citizen involvement in decision-making processes, as well as barriers related to digital inequality and the level of trust in electronic tools of democracy.
Materials and methods. The empirical base of the study includes legal acts regulating the activities of Decide Madrid and open data platforms. The methodological framework includes systemic and institutional approaches that make it possible to consider the platform as an element of the political system of municipal government. Methods of statistical processing of user activity data were used for the analysis.
Results. The conducted research allowed to identify the specifics and functionality of the Decide Madrid platform in promoting civic initiatives, public consultations and initiative budgeting. It was concluded that the Decide Madrid platform has a dual role in the development of civic activity. On the one hand, its implementation was a direct response to the demand of the society to ensure transparency and inclusivity of governance. The platform institutionalized new digital channels of interaction between citizens and municipal authorities, providing tools for direct participation in legislative consultations, project proposals and initiative budgeting. On the other hand, the effectiveness of the Decide Madrid platform as a tool for participatory democracy remains limited. Based on statistical analysis of user activity on the platform, a consistently low but stable level of participation has been noted, amounting to approximately 2−3% of the adult population of the city. The following key problems have been identified: a high threshold for supporting initiatives, the duration of their implementation, the lack of feedback from authors, and the low involvement of young people and people over 65.
Conclusion. The article concludes that the Decide Madrid has played a significant role in the institutionalization of new forms of interaction between government and society and has contributed to the overall growth of civic engagement in Madrid. The publication is of interest to experts and young scientists studying the principles of participatory and digital democracy, as well as the specifics of modern digitalization processes and effective municipal management. The data obtained allow to develop recommendations for digital decision-making for civic participation and introducing effective mechanisms for interaction between the public and government bodies at the federal and regional levels in Russia. The findings also help to identify prospects for implementing similar digital platforms to engage citizens in decision making processes at the municipal level in the regions of Russian in the context of current digitalization trends.