In an ideal world, citizens should be able to express their preferences on any subject that affects them. Hence the rise of referendums, as a response to the flaws of representative democracy. And yet, even on a single issue, a referendum is far from an ideal solution. The fundamental question, once raised by Kenneth Arrow, is whether we can find at least one democratic method for aggregating individual preferences which a priori respects minimum democratic and rational conditions. The study of the social organization of animals may help us find new ways to solve this unsolvable issue. It has inspired new algorithms, especially for robotics. Even if the political or economic issues are highly multidimensional, it seems promising to be inspired by these innovations