Could this be the future of democracy?
In Versailles (Yvelines), in the office of parliamentarian Jean-Noël Barrot (MoDem), a mobile application, called Today I vote, has been tested exclusively since summer 2020. At the end of March, it became accessible to the public and already counts 500 users.
It is the first tool which allows deputies, senators and citizens to exchange directly on the subjects which make the news of the highest authorities of the State.
"It's hard to get people interested in participating in consultation meetings," said the deputy for the 2nd district of Yvelines (Versailles-Sud, Vélizy, Chevreuse).
For a communication channel to work, it must be easy to access, that the topics discussed generate interest and that there is a feeling that follow-up will be given to your investment.
”So, when the creator offered to test his app in preview, Jean-Noël Barrot accepts.
Elected officials can explain their votes
Free for users, available on IOS and Android, it lists all the bills under discussion or recently voted in the National Assembly.
The senatorial decisions will be visible from the month of May.
The tool also makes it possible to monitor the activity of individual parliamentarians.
The information concerning the votes “for” and “against” of the texts studied is automatically transferred from the government site to the application.
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“The official sites are not easy to understand.
There, all the information is grouped together in one place, says Erik De Boisgrollier, the founder of the TodayIvote app based in Nantes (Loire-Atlantique).
All the deputies are already on it but if they want to add information to justify their votes, or take charge of their profile, they must register on a paid subscription.
"
Reach a younger audience
Because elected officials also have the possibility of soliciting the citizens of their constituency by asking them a question directly.
And vice versa.
"So far, we have received questions from people to which we have answered, in particular on the bill resulting from the climate convention," explains Jean-Noël Barrot.
I am in charge of a mission on the economic rebound to identify the sectors most affected by the crisis and I will use the application to seek the opinion of the population.
"
The 4D bill (decentralization, deconcentration, differentiation and decomplexification), which must be put on the agenda this summer to give more weight to local communities, will again be an opportunity for the deputy to consult the Yvelinois.
A tool to bridge the “democratic desert” between two elections
In addition, the smartphone gives access to a younger audience.
"When we go to colleges or high schools, we are faced with an extremely demanding public which is teeming with ideas so we try to create bridges between them and the National Assembly", explains the parliamentarian.
And to mention the end of the accumulation of mandates and the parliamentary reserve, "two things that allowed better contact with the population and that we must reinvent to fulfill our role".
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The aim of the process is clear: to restore confidence in the institutions. “For fifteen years, we have all been connected with social networks and our smartphones, yet confidence in democracy is deteriorating, as in France with the yellow vests, believes Erik De Boisgrollier. What causes this a lot is the democratic desert between two elections. To restore that trust, you have to make a regular commitment. My long term vision is to make TodayIvote a platform that could be used in multiple countries. "
