ABSTRACT
This chapter shows that in modern society the preferences of citizens are hard to know. They are not as connected to the political system as they used to be due to individualization processes. Interactive policy making can from that perspective be viewed as 'a search for the citizen'. The chapter shows that in these types of process the role of politicians appear to cause difficulties. Politicians do not participate in these processes and they claim in advance the right to deviate from emerging proposals by referring to the primacy of politics. It illustrates the problem by analysing a case study: the restructuring of the Bijlmermeer, a high rise neighbourhood in Amsterdam. The chapter formulates a number of suggestions to improve the connection between interactive decision making and politicians by building upon the findings of the case. It also assesses the practical value and feasibility of these proposals by examining recent experiments in interactive policy making in five Dutch municipalities.
