A review of Ordinary People in Extraordinary Times: The Citizenry and the Breakdown of Democracy, by Nancy Bermeo.
About the Author
Frances Hagopianis Jorge Paulo Lemann Senior Lecturer in government at Harvard University, and author of Reorganizing Representation in Latin America (forthcoming).
Across the West, economic, demographic, and cultural shifts have spurred the rise of populists who embrace majoritarianism and popular sovereignty while showing little commitment to constitutionalism and individual liberty.
The military junta that seized power in 2014 finally organized an election in 2019, but with the goal of preventing rather than facilitating a return to civilian rule.
To say that Indian democracy is backsliding misunderstands the country’s history and the challenges it faces: A certain authoritarianism is embedded in India’s constitution and political structures.
