New rules for citizens' assemblies in Aachen

In 2022, the city of Aachen decided to introduce the first permanent Citizens' Assembly in Germany. Since then, a citizens' secretariat and an advisory committee have ensured that the process is sustainable.

On 27 February 2026, the citizens' forum, as the participation committee of the Aachen City Council, decided to change the procedure. Previously, topics for the next Citizens' Assembly could be proposed by residents, a previous mini-public, council factions and departments of the city administration.

The proposed topics were first discussed by the Citizens' Assembly's advisory committee. The committee consists of participants from previous mini-publics. The advisory committee's recommendation was submitted to the Citizens' Forum for discussion. Following the deliberations, the citizens' forum determined the topic of the citizens' assembly.

Citizens' Secretariat takes over topic selection

The Citizens' Secretariat, as the contact point for the Citizens' Assembly, is now responsible for the technical preparation of suitable topics and specific questions for each mini-public. In doing so, the Secretariat works together with the relevant departments of the administration.

‘The starting point is current municipal needs for action, upcoming political decision-making processes and strategically relevant topics where a deliberative consultation process can be expected to deliver recognisable added value,’ according to the administration's proposal, which was approved by the citizens' forum.

On this basis, a list of technically reviewed questions suitable for a Citizens' Assembly is to be drawn up. This list will be sent to the political groups in the city council. The political groups will have the opportunity to raise justified objections to individual topic proposals within a specified period of time. In this way, the administration wants to ensure the political feasibility of the topic at an early stage and avoid subsequent implementation obstacles or unmet expectations.

Topic suggestions from the population

Even under the new rules, residents will still have the opportunity to submit their own topic suggestions. These proposals are intended to serve as indicators of perceived problems, social developments or topics that have not yet been adequately addressed. Unlike in the past, however, the proposed topics do not have to be evaluated in an online vote in order to be considered. Previously, the support of at least 125 Aachen residents was required for this.

The suggestions received are collected and documented by the Citizens' Secretariat and evaluated in consultation with the relevant departments of the administration. ‘Where technically appropriate and feasible in terms of time, they are incorporated into the development of specific questions and help to align the selection of topics more closely with the perceptions and experiences of the urban community,’ the administration explains the procedure.

Voting on the participation portal

The list of topics prepared in this way is presented to all residents of the city of Aachen via the city's participation portal for public evaluation according to importance. Citizens decide in a transparent online survey which topic should be dealt with by the Citizens' Assembly in the respective year. If two or more topics receive the same number of votes, the Citizens' Assembly's advisory committee will decide.

The administration justified its proposed amendment on the grounds that many of the topics previously proposed for citizens' assemblies in Aachen had been formulated in very general terms or had no direct connection to ongoing political or administrative procedures and administrative structures. This had made it difficult at times to translate the recommendations developed by the Citizens' Assembly into concrete measures during the subsequent implementation phase. This lack of connectivity had in some cases led to a mismatch between the high level of commitment of the participants and the actual institutional feasibility of the results.

‘Trust in citizen participation at risk’

The large number and diversity of the topic proposals received also posed challenges for the administration and the accompanying committee. "The high level of coordination required in the selection process tied up human resources and made it difficult to focus the process clearly. In some cases, the public perception was that participation was taking place for its own sake, without the results having a clearly recognisable impact on political decision-making processes. This is an aspect that does not meet the expectations of citizens or the requirements for effective political participation in the long term," the administration notes.

In the long term, this impression undermines confidence in the usefulness of citizen participation and contradicts the City of Aachen's ambition to establish the Citizens' Assembly as an effective and learning instrument of citizen participation. Against this background, the selection of topics should in future be more closely aligned with the actual needs for action at the local level.

The citizens' forum has tasked the administration with regularly evaluating the implementation of the citizens' assemblies and their recommendations and reporting on this to the committee. In addition, the administration should consider setting up a working group to further develop the guidelines of the permanent Citizens' Assembly.

Three citizens' assemblies to date

Three citizens' assemblies took place in Aachen between 2023 and 2025. The topics addressed were making the city more attractive as a shopping destination, the family-friendliness of the city and ‘balanced mobility’.

With its permanent Citizens' Assembly the city of Aachen, together with the German-speaking community of East Belgium and cities such as Brussels, Lüneburg, Milan and Paris, plays a pioneering role