In 2019, the global democratic recession deepened, while protest movements proliferated around the world, fighting largely without leaders or support from major democracies.
Although the overall state of democracy in the world differed little from that in 2005, a series of worrisome trends seem to be contributing to a stagnation of freedom.
Authoritarians often abuse electoral systems and institutional power to thwart majority will. But the basic principles of democracy—political participation, fundamental rights, and the rule of law—can take shape in more…
