Notions of local democracy among Czech mayors

Abstract

The aim of this manuscript is to analyze notions of democracy among Czech mayors. Czechia is dotted with municipalities of various sizes, each with its own mayor, each of whom has a vision of how democracy at the local level should be practiced. Our focus here is on two types of democracies that are seen as alternatives: participatory democracy and representative democracy. For the analyses, two mutually interleaved data sources concerning the Czech mayors were employed: Political Leaders in European Cities (2015) and European Mayor II (2016). Based on an analysis of mayors’ attitudes towards local democracy, our findings suggest that municipal size is an important predictor of local democracy in Czechia - although an association of these attitudes with the mayor’s partisanship and age was found as well. The data also shows a relatively strong connection between attitudes towards local democracy and the mayors’ support for reform at the local level, including the instruments of direct democracy.