E-democracy and Internet Access in EU Law: Strengthening Democratic Participation in the Digital Age

• Published in: International and comparative law review (Olomouc, Czech Republic) Vol. 24; no. 2; pp. 106 - 123
• Main Authors: Kocharyan, Hovsep, Hamuľák, Ondrej, Vardanyan, Lusine
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Olomouc Sciendo 01.12.2024; De Gruyter Poland
• Subjects: Democracy; democratic deficit; electoral law; electronic democracy; electronic voting; Internet access; Internet technologies
• ISSN: 2464-6601; 1213-8770; 2464-6601
• DOI: 10.2478/iclr-2024-0020

Nowadays Internet technologies are developing so much that they cover new social relations. Human life is undergoing rapid digitalisation, which inevitably leaves an imprint on the protection of fundamental rights. Political life is no exception either. Today the legal experience shows that the European states are already offering various effective mechanisms and solutions to strengthen their democratic principles, which are based precisely on Internet technologies, in which the concept of e-democracy (“electronic democracy”) is increasingly becoming an urgent topic of research. In this research, the authors will analyse on how the Internet access can ensure a dialogue between citizens and the government, as well as strengthen the EU’s democratic principles in the digital world. Moreover, the authors will also focus on the law enforcement experience of different European states in order to bring out their positive aspects that can become effective guidelines for building an appropriate mechanism for the participation of EU citizens in political life through Internet technologies.