PROSPECTS FOR EUROPEAN DEMOCRACY AFTER THE TREATY OF LISBON

The article aims to focus on the unique nature of the EU as an organization – sui generis and the first transnational democracy in the world. It investigats the emergence of pan-European instruments of deliberative and participatory democracy, namely: the Conference on the Future of Europe and the European Citizens' Initiative, as well as the ideas of transnational lists and the system of "Spitzenkandidaten", demonstrating the evolution of the democratic process in the EU after the Lisbon Treaty and the potential for its modernization within the Do Talks framework. In the context of the upcoming European elections 2024, it is reminded that democracy rests on the empathy of citizens and the ability to politicians to hear the "vox populi", showing them that their opinion matters.