The outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic is the perfect storm that corroborates the magnitude of upcoming challenges for the future of democracy, cities, and citizen participation. The impacts of the covid-19 pandemic in cities, where more than half of the world population lives, offer a unique cross section to understand whether and to what extent participatory practices have been pushed forward. Evidence from European cities shows emerging trends of shortterm local participatory practices focussed on the provision of practical support in different policy domains through online and on-the-field channels.