Although Australians continue to endorse democracy in principle, many feel that the political system no longer represents them or responds to their needs.
A flagship project of the Centre for Deliberative Democracy, Connecting to Parliament explores ways to create genuine two-way conversations between the public and parliament, so that people feel heard, and the deliberative capacity of Australian democracy is strengthened.
In 2020 and 2021, the project team trialled Deliberative Town Halls with two Federal Members of Parliament, with promising results. A deliberative town hall was convened in the ACT electorate of Fenner in 2020 with the Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP on the topic of mitochondrial donation. Dr Leigh cited the process when casting his conscience vote in line with the recommendation of his constituents. In 2021, Alicia Payne MP hosted an online Deliberative Town Hall on increasing youth engagement in politics.
Between 2023 and 2025, the project team focused on mapping public support for deliberative innovations in Australian democracy. In October 2024, a national survey was conducted with 4,200 Australian respondents aged 18 years or older. Along with questions about political interest, partisanship, satisfaction and trust, the survey examined public appetite for integrating citizen deliberation into political decision-making processes in Australia, and the effects on public trust and confidence in parliament.
Beginning in 2026, the current phase of the project explores the attitudes of parliamentarians towards enhanced public participation in politics through citizen deliberation, and the capacity of parliamentary and policy institutions to receive, consider, and respond to input from deliberative processes.
The Connecting to Parliament project is adapted from the successful Connecting to Congress project at Ohio State University, led by Professor Michael Neblo.
