This page collects the best video introductions to citizens' assemblies and deliberative democracy — real footage of real assemblies, plus a couple of short explainers on why the model works. Prefer to read instead? See our reading list of articles and books on the same topic.
Goodbye Politicians, Hello Democracy
A feature documentary following 30 everyday Michiganders, chosen by lottery, as they find more common ground than the politicians around them did. If you only watch one thing on this page, watch this.
See it below ↓Quick Hits
Under 5 minutes — the fastest way to explain the idea to someone who's never heard of it.
2:56
What Are Democratic Lotteries?
The clearest, shortest explainer of what a civic assembly actually is and how selecting people by lottery — not election — changes what's possible.
Watch on YouTube ↗
2:46
Explaining the Citizens' Assembly
One of the world's leading experts on civic assemblies breaks down, in plain language, what one actually is.
Watch on YouTube ↗
3:32
In Their Own Words: Deschutes County Civic Assembly Members
Everyday Oregonians who served on a real civic assembly on youth homelessness reflect on what the experience was actually like.
Watch on YouTube ↗
2:13
What Is Sortition? Why Elections Aren't Democratic
A rapid-fire case, straight from Sortition USA's Ian Troesoyer, for choosing representatives by lottery instead of by election.
Watch on YouTube ↗
3:26
Against Elections
The historian who helped popularize modern sortition argues that it's elections — not lotteries — that are the outdated idea.
Watch on YouTube ↗
4:51
What Did Democracy Really Mean in Athens?
The animated origin story: Athenian democracy ran on lottery, not elections — and it held up for centuries.
Watch on YouTube ↗
4:22
A Real Democracy Would Use Sortition
A short animated explainer on how lottery-selected assemblies could fix what's broken in modern politics.
Watch on YouTube ↗A Bit More Depth
5–10 minutes — for someone who's curious enough to sit through a full coffee break.
8:46
Hoping to Fix Elections Is a Dead End: Sortition Is the Real Fix
A former Vermont state legislator, drawing on decades inside the system, explains why election reform won't be enough.
Watch on YouTube ↗
8:52
2026 L.A. Charter Assembly: Delegates' Perspectives
Lottery-selected Angelenos describe what it was like to sit down together and rewrite part of their city's charter.
Watch on YouTube ↗
9:32
What If We Replaced Politicians With Randomly Selected People?
The TED talk that introduced millions of viewers to sortition as a serious, practical alternative to elections.
Watch on YouTube ↗The Full Picture
Over 10 minutes — for someone who wants to see the whole process play out.
1:16:00
Goodbye Politicians, Hello Democracy
Feature documentary following 30 everyday Michiganders, chosen by lottery, as they work through a real pandemic-response question together — and find more common ground than the politicians around them did. Streams free, no sign-up, directly from the filmmakers.
Watch free at goodbyepoliticians.movie ↗
16:42
When Citizens Assemble
A journalist's on-the-ground look at Ireland's Citizens' Assembly — the process that helped the country work through two of its most divisive issues.
Watch on YouTube ↗
27:54
The Ancient Invention That Solves Corruption
A deep-dive video essay on sortition's roots in ancient Athens and the research behind why a lottery-selected, diverse group of everyday people can out-perform elected officials on hard problems.
Watch on YouTube ↗Sortition Academy
A free video course on citizen assemblies and selection by lot — foundations through real-world examples.
Start the course →Stay in the loop
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