The purpose of the paper is to analyze how participatory democracyhas been implemented in French communes. The question of neighbourhooddemocracy is a norm of political speech as local representatives need to legitimizetheir role in the public space by getting closer to their electors. Does theimplementation of participatory tools depend on the ideology and the socializationof the mayors or on the structure of the commune (size, territorial configuration)?The paper mainly uses a quantitative investigation made on communes above 5000inhabitants as well as interviews conducted in specific communes known for theirparticipatory culture.