Paris has long been a laboratory for political experimentation.  

In 1789, its citizens famously rejected the divine right of kings, sparking a revolution in pursuit of democracy. Decades of political upheaval and bloodstained guillotines followed.  

For a brief period in 1871, the city conducted its first radical experiment in self-governance whereby a “commune” of elected working-class residents controlled the city before they too met a bloody end. Though it was short-lived, La Commune de Paris left a lasting legacy, shaping debates around the state’s role in France for generations. 

More than a century later, Paris continues to explore direct democracy. In 2014, it became the world’s largest city to adopt “participatory budgeting,” a process in which citizens vote on how to allocate part of the city’s budget.   

This began as a pilot project shortly after Mayor Anne Hidalgo’s election, allowing residents to vote on the distribution of €20mn across 15 pre-selected municipal projects. Within months, it expanded to offer €65mn citywide and inviting residents to propose their own ideas. 

Between 2014 and 2020, the mayor’s office pledged €500mn – around 5% of its capital investment budget – for participatory budgeting. In 2016 alone, nearly 159,000 Parisians took part, voting to allocate close to €100mn. 

The process is simple and inclusive. Any resident can propose a project if it meets four basic criteria: it must be submitted by a resident, serve the public interest, fall within the city’s jurisdiction, and be a one-time capital expense. Every Parisian, regardless of nationality, is eligible to vote, and ballots are cast easily at polling stations throughout the city or online via the official city app. In one project, anyone over the age of seven could vote on how €10mn was spent on school improvements, and 66,000 children took part.  

The results have been creative and impactful. The Canal d’Ourcq in the 19th arrondissement now glows with colourful streetlamps. “Bagageries,” or secure luggage storage spaces for the homeless, have been installed in several neighbourhoods. Rooftops have been transformed into urban gardens, and a former laundromat now hosts a “solidarity café” offering French lessons and cooking workshops.  

The benefits of participatory budgeting in Paris extend well beyond the physical transformation of the city. In a place long marked by riots, direct democracy gives historically marginalised communities a way to feel their needs are recognised. It has also boosted civic engagement by letting Parisians see concrete outcomes from political engagement. Anyone strolling along a former train track turned jogging path can witness democracy in action. By allowing ordinary citizens to participate in decision-making, a relatively small amount of the city’s budget can go a long way towards cultivating a stronger sense of ownership over public spaces and services.  

But despite its many democratic ideals, participatory budgeting in Paris has revealed significant limitations in practice, most notably in its inefficiency and limited representativeness.  

While the initiative was designed to democratize city spending, it has consistently engaged only a small fraction of the population. In 2019, its most active year, just 10% of Parisians participated in the vote, raising questions about whose voices are truly being represented. The digital nature of the process further skews participation toward more tech-savvy and connected citizens, potentially sidelining older residents, immigrants, and those without reliable internet access.  

Paris’s experiment with participatory budgeting is a bold attempt to maintain the spirit of grassroots democracy that has long characterized the city. Like all forms of democracy it is imperfect, but it provides a compelling vision for how civic power can be shared more broadly.  

Cities like New York, Madrid, Seoul, and São Paulo have also adopted participatory budgeting in various forms, each tailoring the process to fit local needs and political cultures. The first experiment with participatory budgeting in Porto Alegre Brazil has been hailed as the “biggest and most successful” project in the world, involving 17,000 residents at its peak in 2002. The project was initially designed to help combat local corruption and restore faith in local politics.  

While the challenges of inclusivity and engagement remain, the continued evolution of these experiments suggests a growing appetite for more transparent, responsive, and collaborative governance in cities around the world.