Citizen Engagement and Building Trust in Government

While global challenges are addressed by national governments, increasingly subnational actors such as states, communities, and cities have needed to step up to take action when traditional nation-states have not been able to make progress due to political polarization and partisan gridlock. In the next German-American State Legislator, legislators will discuss the common challenge of waning public trust and citizen engagement.

Trust in government is an essential element of a functioning democracy. In both the United States and Germany, governments face declining trust in political institutions that have been influenced by perceived corruption, lack of transparency, ineffective governance, partisan polarization, media, dis- and misinformation, and overall feelings of voter disenfranchisement. Systemic inequalities can further contribute to widespread mistrust among marginalized communities or regions and economic instability can exacerbate doubts in the government’s ability to adequately address citizen’s needs. Moreover, responses to recent crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, can either bolster or diminish trust, depending on the perceived effectiveness and transparency of governmental actions. A climate of distrust in institutions can also lead to radicalization and the proliferation of conspiracy beliefs. With important elections on the horizon on both sides of the Atlantic, these issues are of particular interest during this “Super Election Year.” How can legislators at the state level contribute to building trust in government?

Join the American Council on Germany and the Aspen Institute Germany on May 23 for our next State-to-State: German-American State Legislator Dialogue for a discussion with German and American state legislators, including State Senator Roger Niello (R), California State Senate; Marion Schiefer (CDU), State Parliament of Schleswig-Holstein; and State Senator Cindy Winckler (D), Iowa State Senate.

Senator Roger Niello (R) was elected to represent portions of South Placer, suburban Sacramento, and Sutter and Yuba counties in the California State Senate in 2022. He first began his career as a Certified Public Accountant and then joined his family business, the Niello Auto Group, running retail automobile dealerships. Senator Niello has previously served as a Sacramento County Supervisor and a member of the California State Assembly. Following his time in the Assembly, he accepted the appointment as President and CEO of the Sacramento Metro Chamber.

In the State Senate, Senator Niello is the Vice Chair of the Budget and Fiscal Review, Banking and Financial Institutions, Insurance, and Transportation Committees. He is a member of the Business, Professions, and Economic Development, Judiciary, Legislative Ethics, Joint Fairs Allocation and Classification, Joint Legislative Budget, and Joint Rules Committees.

Throughout his career, Senator Niello has been a dedicated community and civic volunteer, serving in various capacities. He and his wife, Mary, live in Fair Oaks.

Representative Marion Schiefer (CDU) was born in 1975 in Wiesbaden, is married, and has three children. She studied law in Mainz and Castellón, Spain. After completing her first and second state law examinations, she initially worked as a research assistant in finance and tax law at the University of Mainz before being appointed as a judge in Hesse. In 2007/2008, she was a Member of the Hessian State Parliament. She worked for several years in the Hessian ministerial administration and changed careers to the executive branch as a Ministerial Councilor. During her parental leave, she moved to Schleswig-Holstein. From 2014 to 2023, she worked as a judge at the local court in Hamburg, including as a family and juvenile court judge and as head of enforcement at the Hamburg Youth Detention Center.

Representative Schiefer has been a Member of the Schleswig-Holstein State Parliament since 2023, Chairwoman of the CDU parliamentary group’s specialist working group on internal affairs and law, as well as Spokeswoman for justice, victim protection, the protection of the constitution, and extremism. Furthermore, she is a member of the Committee on Internal Affairs and Legal Affairs, the Committee on Cooperation between Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg, the Committee on the Election of Judges, the Parliamentary Control Committee, and chairwoman of the G10 Commission. Representative Schiefer has been a CDU member since 1997.

Senator Cindy Winckler (D) was born in Des Moines, Iowa. She moved to Davenport when she was young and has continued to be a part of the Davenport community throughout her adult years. Senator Winckler was elected to her first term in the Iowa Senate in 2022 after serving 11 terms in the Iowa House. She is a Ranking Member of both the Ethics and Education Appropriations Subcommittees and serves on the Appropriations, Local Government, State Government, Transportation, and Ways and Means Committees. She represents Senate District 49, which includes Davenport as well as Buffalo and Buffalo Township. Senator Winckler is currently serving as a commissioner on the Education Commission of the States. She is a member of the Davenport Schools Network for Community and School Partnerships.

Cindy has been a family and consumer science teacher in small and large school districts in Iowa – Davis County, Pleasant Valley, Calamus, and Davenport. She retired as a Quality Learning Consultant with the Mississippi Bend Area Education Agency in Bettendorf and continues her work on education equity issues. In her capacity as a Quality Learning Consultant, she worked with teachers, administrators, and school districts to plan and implement student achievement initiatives. Cindy was named to Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers in February 2000.

She graduated from West High School in Davenport. She earned a BSE in Home Economics from Northeast Missouri State University and her master’s degree in Educational Technology from the University of Northern Iowa. Cindy and her husband, Joe, were married in 1973 and have two adult children.