October 2012, Volume 23, Issue 4
Politics in Crisis?
Although politics today is in critical condition—some even say it is dying—it is all the more important to revive it.
Articles
October 2012, Volume 23, Issue 4
The Ethnocracy Trap
A political system in which power is formally divided among ethnic or sectarian groups may seem like a good idea in conflict-ridden societies, but it bears a high price and makes true democratic transition harder to achieve.
October 2012, Volume 23, Issue 4
School for Dictators
A review of The Dictator’s Learning Curve: Inside the Global Battle for Democracy by William J. Dobson
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
The Transformation of the Arab World
The electoral triumph of Islamist parties has dampened the enthusiasm of democrats for the “Arab Spring.”
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Putinism Under Siege: Implosion, Atrophy, or Revolution?
A newly awakened Russia is now asking of series of questions, such as how to transform the current system and who will be the actors to lead the transformation.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Putinism Under Siege: An Autopsy of Managed Democracy
Although they have quieted down as quickly as they flared up, the clamorous protests that followed the dishonest Russian legislative elections in December 2011 have essentially destroyed Putin’s regime, the infamous “managed democracy.”
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Putinism Under Siege: The Strange Alliance of Democrats and Nationalists
One of the most striking and unexpected features of the recent demonstrations in Russia was the partnership of liberals and nationalists in the ranks of the protesters.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Putinism Under Siege: The Protesters and the Public
After the December 2011 State Duma elections, the Russian opposition and civil society quickly launched large protest rallies in response to electoral fraud.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Putinism Under Siege: Can There Be a Color Revolution?
The recent protests in Russia raise the question of whether the Putin regime could fall to a “color” or electoral revolution like those that have ousted other autocratic regimes in postcommunist Europe and Eurasia over the past decade and a half.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Turkey and Thailand: Unlikely Twins
Turkey and Thailand, two countries at different corners of the Asian landmass, appear at first glance to be an odd couple, but a closer look at their respective political situations reveals surprising parallels.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
African Elections: Two Divergent Trends
Regular elections have become a fixture of political life throughout sub-Saharan Africa, but there are now “two Africas” in this regard: one where elections bring the blessings of greater political openness and competition, and another where elections are, in effect, one more tool that authoritarians use to retain power.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Oil, Politics, and Ghana’s Democracy
Ghana has won praise for its steady progress toward democratic consolidation, in late 2010 it joined the ranks of the world’s oil producers. Will the democratic institutions be able to resist the “resource curse”?
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
The DRC’s Crumbling Legitimacy
On 9 December 2011, incumbent president Joseph Kabila was declared the official winner of the DRC’s deeply flawed presidential election, resulting in a legal president without legitimacy and an uncertain political future.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Senegal: What Will Turnover Bring?
Although Senegal has often been regarded as a democracy, its regime should more properly have been classified as competitive authoritarian. Will the 2012 election of a new president prove to be a turning point?
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Hungary’s Illiberal Turn: How Things Went Wrong
How has Hungary, initially seen as a leading postcommunist success story, fallen into its current troubles?
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Hungary’s Illiberal Turn: Disabling the Constitution
In Hungary’s 2010 general elections, Fidesz won 68 percent of the seats in parliament—allowing it to impose a wholly new constitutional order.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
Hungary’s Illiberal Turn: Can Outsiders Help?
Can outside actors help Hungarians to loosen Fidesz’s centralized grip on all of their country’s governing institutions?
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
The Surprising Success of Multiparty Presidentialism
Until recently, political scientists argued that democracy had poor chances of survival in a multiparty presidential regime. Latin America’s recent experience tells a different story.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
The Spirit of Aung San Suu Kyi
A review of The Lady and the Peacock: The Life of Aung San Suu Kyi by Peter Popham.
April 2012, Volume 23, Issue 2
The Languages of the Arab Revolutions
The upheavals that have been shaking the Arab-Muslim world are revolutions in discourse as well as in the streets. Arabs are using not only traditional and religious vocabularies, but also a new set of expressions that are modern and represent popular aspirations.