In theory, participatory democracies are thought to empower citizens in local decision-making processes. However, in practice, community voice is rarely representative, and even in cases of equal representation, citizens are often disempowered through bureaucratic processes. Drawing on the case of a firearm discharge debate from a rural county’s municipal meetings in Virginia, I extend research about how power operates in participatory settings. Partisan political ideology fueled the debate amongst constituents in expected ways, wherein citizens engaged collectivist and individualist frames to sway the county municipal board (Celinska 2007). However, it was a third frame that ultimately explains the ordinance’s repeal: the bureaucratic frame, an ideological orientation to participatory processes that defers decision-making to disembodied abstract rules and procedures. This frame derives its power from its depoliticization potential, allowing bureaucrats to evade contentious political debates. Whoever is best able to wield this frame not only depoliticizes the debate to gain rationalized legitimacy but can do so in such a way to favor a partisan agenda. This study advances gun research and participatory democracy research by analyzing how the bureaucratic frame, which veils partisanship, offers an alternative political possibility for elected officials, community leaders, and citizens to adjudicate partisan debates.

从理论上讲，参与式民主被认为可以在地方决策过程中赋予公民权力。然而，在实践中，社区的声音很少具有代表性，即使在代表平等的情况下，公民也经常被官僚程序剥夺权力。借鉴弗吉尼亚州农村县市政会议的枪支​​排放辩论的案例，我扩展了关于权力如何在参与性环境中运作的研究。党派政治意识形态以预期的方式推动了选民之间的辩论，其中公民参与集体主义和个人主义框架来影响县市政委员会（Celinska 2007）。然而，最终解释条例废除的是第三个框架：官僚框架，一种对参与过程的意识形态取向，将决策推迟到无形的抽象规则和程序。这个框架从其去政治化潜力中获得力量，使官僚能够逃避有争议的政治辩论。谁最能运用这个框架，不仅可以使辩论去政治化以获得合理化的合法性，而且可以以支持党派议程的方式这样做。本研究通过分析掩盖党派之争的官僚框架如何为民选官员、社区领袖和公民对党派辩论进行裁决提供另一种政治可能性，从而推进枪支研究和参与式民主研究。