About the Journal of Democracy

The Journal of Democracy is the world’s leading publication on the theory and practice of democracy. Since its first appearance in 1990, it has engaged both activists and intellectuals in critical discussions of the problems of and prospects for democracy around the world. Today, the Journal is at the center of debate on the major social, political, and cultural challenges that confront emerging and established democracies alike.

The Journal includes not only clusters of essays on topical themes or countries but also articles dealing with every region of the world. In addition, each issue features reviews of important books on democracy; reports on recent and upcoming elections; and excerpts from speeches and appeals by civil society groups, political leaders, and democratic dissidents.

The Journal explores in depth every aspect of the establishment, consolidation, and maintenance of democracy, including political institutions, parties and elections, federalism, constitutionalism, public opinion, the role of the media, civil society, ethnic conflict, and the threat posed by authoritarianism. It covers not only practical political matters but also questions of democratic theory and culture. While it maintains the highest scholarly standards, it is written and edited for the general reader.

The Journal’s Influence

A truly global publication, the Journal attracts both authors and readers from all over the world. The Journal’s authors include eminent social scientists and historians, statesmen and leaders of democratic movements, and renowned intellectuals. Readers include government policy analysts, political scientists, scholars, educators, and all those interested in human rights, international affairs, foreign policy, and comparative politics. Journal essays, authors, and editors have been widely cited in such leading publications as the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Boston Globe, New York Review of Books, Chicago Sun-Times, Foreign Affairs, National Interest, Foreign Policy, Wilson Quarterly, Democratization, Daily Times (Pakistan), Commentaire (France), Nova Cidadania (Portugal), and Korea Times (Korea).

The Journal is considered one of the premier authorities in the field of democracy studies. It is available online through Project MUSE, and is the most consulted of all the journals available on the site. MUSE is a collaborative website between libraries and publishers, housing more than three-hundred humanities, arts, and social-sciences journals.

The Journal of Democracy ranks among the most influential social-sciences journals. For information on the Journal’s Impact Factor, view our page at The Johns Hopkins University Press.

Relationship to the National Endowment for Democracy and International Forum for Democratic Studies

The Journal of Democracy is part of the International Forum for Democratic Studies, housed within the National Endowment for Democracy.

Relationship to The Johns Hopkins University Press

The Journal of Democracy and its book series are published by The Johns Hopkins University Press. The JHU Press is America’s oldest and one of its largest university presses, publishing more than 170 books each year and 52 scholarly journals. By long tradition The JHU Press has published with distinction in such disciplines as literary studies, classics, history, economics, political science, and the history of science and medicine.