Why go out and vote when politics is trying to take away all our motivation? Real debates have disappeared, there are no election programmes, no space to exchange views. As opportunities for staying informed are dwindling, it is becoming increasingly difficult for people to engage directly with the politicians who make decisions. Even publics hearing can now be held just online, in writing.
In the second-largest city of Hungary, Debrecen voter turnout has been far below average in recent years, and a local organisation, the Association of Alternative Communities, wanted to change this. Their campaign was a success: they managed to reach, involve and motivate thousands of people to vote. Hundreds of people came to their events organised in the preceding weeks, more than a thousand people filled in their online election monitor and, most importantly, turnout for the European and local elections held together on 9 June 2024 increased.
How did it happen?
First, they set out to make the period leading up to the elections filled with real public engagement. They convened local people - wherever their sympathies lied - to think and debate together, to brainstorm about the issues of the city and the country, to go out and vote, and to make their vote the result of a considered, informed decision. The events took place in their community space, Baross16, where they also put up large posters encouraging people to vote, in front of which anyone could take a selfie. They also made videos in which people from Debrecen told the world why they were going to vote.
They created a Debrecen version of the Voksmonitor, so that all residents preparing to vote could compare their own views with those of the parties on important local and national issues. An Election Fair was organised, with drama, debates, discussions, and hey held an election night party with music until dawn, where the journalists of Debreciner, a local independent portal broadcasted the election results live.
The Association of Alternative Communities was founded in 1998 in Debrecen as a cultural organisation for young people. Over the past 25 years, its activities have been constantly expanding, and it is now a regional association. They support rural CSOs and local communities to help them more effectively represent their interests. They run a community space that is a home for all self-organised local groups, but they have also managed to build relationships with businesses, service providers, media, secondary schools, universities and municipal institutions. Year after year, they also focus more and more on issues of participation, channelling the needs and concerns of local people into decision-making to rebuild the dialogue between citizens and decision-makers.
