In a historic moment for participatory democracy, the Los Angeles Charter Reform Commission voted unanimously to approve a new Charter Preamble generated by its residents. The preamble language was developed directly from recommendations generated by 36 Angelenos at a January mini-assembly organized by Public Democracy Los Angeles. The delegates—randomly selected by public lottery to reflect the demographic diversity of Los Angeles—gathered at the Japanese American National M

On Thursday March 26, 2026, the Los Angeles Charter Reform Commission took a groundbreaking step: voting to make civic assemblies a permanent part of the charter reform process. Under Section 493, Commission Administration, Personnel and Budget part C, the approved language states:  The Commission shall enact a parallel civic assembly process to be conducted by Commission staff or through a partnership with an advocacy group or organization approved by the Commission. This mi

The results of the Los Angeles civic assembly on the structure and election of city council were presented to the Los Angeles Charter Commission on March 10. The report was presented to the commission, including the recommendations at a public meeting, with a verbal presentation by Linn Davis of Healthy Democracy with the recommendation details presented by the participants of the assembly. Recommendations were: 1. Establish a permanent civic assembly, randomly selected to

On January 11, thirty-six residents gathered at the Democracy Center , in Little Tokyo, for seven hours to develop recommendations for a city bill of rights and a potential preamble to the city charter. This preamble would codify city values and help guide the resolution of ambiguities in the legal interpretation of the charter. As in the previous mini-assembly, participants were selected by lottery from hundreds of applicants to reflect Los Angeles’s demographic diversity. T

On December 13th, thirty-six residents gathered at the Institute of Contemporary Art Los Angeles for seven hours to tackle one of the city's most contentious issues: how LA approves development and manages land use. These decisions shape housing supply, affordability, and neighborhood character—yet everyday Angelenos rarely get a real voice in the process. This wasn't another one-minute public comment session. Participants were chosen by lottery from hundreds of sign-ups to

Public Democracy LA has been authorized by the Los Angeles Charter Review Commission to conduct two mini-assemblies as part of Los Angeles' charter reform process—a major milestone in bringing everyday Angelenos into the heart of how our city is governed. The first mini-assembly will take place Saturday, December 13  at the Institute of Contemporary Art LA. Forty Angelenos, selected by lottery from 300 volunteers to reflect the city's demographic diversity, will deliberate on