The new issue of the Journal of Democracy is here! Read about Gen-Z uprisings; lessons from Brazil on holding would-be autocrats accountable; how direct-democracy initiatives such as referendums are being undermined by AI; the steps Ukraine must take to remain democratic; and more.
Last week, a Bangladeshi court convicted deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina of crimes against humanity and sentenced her to death. Hasina, now exiled in India, was ousted by a student uprising in August 2024 after unleashing a vicious crackdown on protesters, killing more than a thousand.
Gulf monarchies are exerting influence all over the world — in sports, media, entertainment, and politics. Where their human-rights records once drew censure, these oil-rich kingdoms are now being courted and their leaders welcomed in Western halls of power. How have these countries remained bastions of repression while white-washing their reputations? The following Journal of Democracy essays…
The Journal of Democracy has partnered with the Review of Democracy podcast and the Democratic Dialogues podcast to share in-depth conversations with JoD authors on their latest essays. Listen, read, and learn!
On Sunday, Hondurans voted for their next president and vice-president, members of Congress, and municipal mayors. But the country’s vote-tally system failed.
“As U.S. military assets accumulate in the Caribbean and diplomatic pressure on the Nicolás Maduro regime intensifies,” writes José Ramón Morales-Arilla in a new Journal of Democracy online exclusive, “two starkly different visions of Venezuela’s future dominate policy discussions.”
On 8 December 2024, a coalition of Islamic militants toppled the brutal Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, whose family had ruled the country for more than half a century.
Tanzania’s Independence Day was Tuesday, barely a month since the shocking and brutal crackdown on thousands of protesters decrying the country’s sham election.
Autocrats around the world have been innovating new ways to steal elections, manipulating rules and revising laws to keep themselves in power for as long as possible.
Why are would-be strongmen so unlikely to succeed in undoing democracy? What steps can we take to protect democracies from advanced AI? Should we be worried about the Gulf states’ growing influence?
With democracy in trouble across the globe, it’s easy to forget how and why a steady succession of dictatorships fell in the last half of the twentieth century. Democracy’s strengths, and its record, should give cause for hope at a moment when autocracy appears ascendent.
Last week, the UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to adopt a resolution condemning the United States’ “commercial and financial embargo” against Cuba. The outcome came as no surprise.
When María Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize earlier this month, she made sure to emphasize that her accomplishments were not hers alone — they were shared with countless other activists agitating for democracy in Venezuela.
When democracies are clearly outperforming autocracies in so many ways, why the widespread disenchantment with democratic government? Why are democracy and human-rights activists across the globe turning to Bitcoin?
In Bolivia’s presidential runoff on Sunday, center-right senator Rodrigo Paz Pereira defeated right-wing former interim president Jorge “Tuto” Quiroga.
The list of democratic countries suffering from polarized politics is long and growing. The Czech Republic — one of postcommunist Europe’s strongest democracies — is the latest to join.
The newly aggressive U.S. policy toward Nicolás Maduro and his autocratic regime, including the recent sinking of alleged Venezuelan drug boats, did not come out of nowhere.
When voters are asked to cast ballots for or against important national policies — whether to draft or adopt a new constitution, to abolish or reinstate term limits, or, perhaps most famously, to leave or remain in the European Union — they take that job seriously. Yet national referendums are not always put forward in…
On this International Day of Democracy, we reflect on democracy’s inherent value, try to understand why faith in self-rule is waning, and consider what we can do to strengthen the cause, sharing a selection of milestone essays to aid in this effort.
Rachel Kleinfeld and Nicole Bibbins Sedaca detail the dangers of deep polarization and lay out steps that leaders and citizens can take to stop the violence.
Democracy’s very survival is at the top of our readers’ minds this month. Democratic backsliding is a major concern, but democratic resilience appears shaky at best. Can anything be done? Read this month’s top ten essays to find out.
The Journal of Democracy has partnered with the Review of Democracy and People, Power, Politics podcasts to share in-depth conversations with JoD authors on their latest essays. Listen, read, and learn!
Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, and Narendra Modi, along with the presidents of Turkey, Iran, and other states are working together to amass power at home and project it abroad. These essays explain how they’re doing this, and what democracies can do to prevent it.
Essays that highlight the role of labor in the fight for democracy and good government across the globe — from Africa and the Americas to Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and beyond.
The Alaska summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin struck an uncanny resemblance to the Washington-Moscow meetings of the Cold War. But 2025 is not 1985. Washington and Moscow cannot simply redraw the map without Ukraine and Europe at the table. How should the war in Ukraine end?
Sharp partisan divides and bitter social rivalries are increasingly spiraling into zero-sum conflicts. The antidote to such hatred and violence, argues one JoD author, is direct, face-to-face dialogue among neighbors and communities.
Democracy is in decline, growing weaker from within. But why? And can we reverse the damage before it’s too late?
Steadfast, nonviolent movements are often the most effective way to counter an authoritarian. These essays explain how to start, sharpen, and sustain a movement.
On International Youth Day 2025, the Journal of Democracy celebrates the creativity, determination, and courage of young people across the world fighting for democracy.
The international drug trade has ravaged Latin America. Drug cartels and organized crime groups have grown powerful enough in some countries to infiltrate and even challenge the power of the state. As demand for drugs and profits soars, violence, death, and displacement rain down upon communities, leaving democracy and the economy in shambles.
There’s a fine line between genuine cybersecurity and digital authoritarianism. Many autocrats use the pretext of digital order to surveil, silence, and suppress their citizens. State cyber repression creates a climate of fear around social media and the internet, shrinking one of the last remaining spaces for free speech.
From the early days of this journal to our most recent issue, the JoD editors have compiled ten essays we think you should not miss this summer.
The latest issue of the Journal of Democracy answers some of today’s most pressing questions about democracy, and features essays on Iran, Turkey, Tanzania, the Philippines, and more. But it all goes behind a paywall after July 31. Don’t miss your chance to read the entire issue for free!
In the July issue of the Journal of Democracy, Stanley Bill and Ben Stanley unpack the trilemma that post-illiberal leaders face and explain why illiberals stand to benefit.
After years of increasingly authoritarian rule, Tanzanian president Samia Suluhu Hassan was hailed as a democratic reformer. But as Dan Paget and Aikande Clement Kwayu write in the July issue of the JoD, the president is more performer than reformer, relying on theatrics to delay real reform while sharpening her tools of repression.
Don’t miss your chance to read the Journal of Democracy’s July issue for free through the 31.
How resilient are democracies, really? While many countries have gone from democratic to authoritarian and back again, few have been able to sustain their recovery. The following essays offer strategies for defending and deepening democracy around the world.
Authoritarians can manipulate the law to rationalize their rule, but the law can equally serve to check authoritarian power. The Journal of Democracy essays below explore the dynamics between leaders and the law. Read for free now.
Syria is at a critical juncture. It’s up to the new government — and the people — to chart a more inclusive, transparent, and prosperous way forward. The Journal of Democracy essays below examine the challenges and opportunities Syria now faces.
A free market can foster pluralism and insulate civilians from authoritarian coercion. But money used the wrong way has enormous potential for destruction. The Journal of Democracy essays below, free for a limited time, explore the complex relationship between capitalism and democracy.
Turkish democracy is at a turning point: Will democratic forces be able to triumph at the ballot box in the next general election, or will the country devolve into full-blown authoritarianism?
The new issue of the Journal of Democracy grapples with the biggest challenges facing democracies of the past, present, and future. Don’t miss these four essays, free to read through July 31.
In a new online exclusive, Journal of Democracy cofounder Marc Plattner examines both what unites and distinguishes liberalism and democracy — and what liberal democracies must do to remain free.
The Journal of Democracy has partnered with the Review of Democracy podcast to share in-depth conversations with JoD authors on their latest essays. Listen, read, and learn!
The escalating conflict between Iran and Israel now includes the United States, and fears are growing that it could become a regional war. But there’s another war that people aren’t talking about: the Islamic Republic’s brutal campaign against its own people.
The May 2025 Philippine midterms are just the latest chapter in a yearslong feud between the Marcos and Duterte clans. These essays below plot the twists and turns of the political drama, and explain why it’s really a diversion from meaningful democratic reform.
The following Journal of Democracy essays chronicle the rise, fall, and resurgence of illiberal populism in Poland, and what it means for the country’s democratic future.
Mexico launched a radical overhaul of its judiciary on June 1 with its first-ever judicial election. The controversial plan risks weakening judicial independence, checks on presidential power, and democracy itself.
South Koreans just elected a new president. Will he be good for South Korean democracy?
Voters across the world see democracy as unresponsive, out of touch, inept, and even corrupt. Something needs to change, but no one can agree on what. What democracy needs, Joel Day argues in a new Journal of Democracy online exclusive, is a single bold and effective reform plan.
Putin’s war on Ukraine, AI’s threat to democracy, and democracy’s crisis of confidence have been at the forefront of readers’ minds this month. Read May’s top 10 essays for free now!
Romania is the latest example of rising far-right populism across Europe. The essays below examine the forces driving these illiberal political movements.
On Tuesday, May 13, the United States announced it would lift longstanding sanctions on Syria. Reintegrating into the global economy could lay the foundations for Syria’s stability and prosperity. In the Journal of Democracy’s latest issue, leading scholars unpack Assad’s unexpected fall, and the reasons for hope that Syria will flourish.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu-nationalist BJP explicitly exclude and routinely attack the country’s largest minority, but the political opposition is silent, too afraid to jeopardize its base of support. These essays explore India’s complex democratic history and its prospects for the future.
Steven Levitsky and Lucan Way’s landmark 2002 essay clarified the shifting democratic landscape of the late twentieth century. Now, competitive authoritarianism more than anything else explains the state of global democracy today.
Determined to project their influence abroad, authoritarian regimes are subverting international rules and norms while disguising their misdeeds. The easiest way to do this? Convince the world they are benign, upstanding members of the international community.
How do autocrats control the media? Will Syria be free now that Assad has fallen? What’s to blame for democratic backsliding? Why must Ukraine win? The April issue of the Journal of Democracy tackles some of today’s most pressing questions.
Washington is pressuring Ukraine to agree to a peace deal with Russia that bows to many Russian demands while leaving Ukraine vulnerable. Robert Person argues that Putin cannot be trusted and Kyiv must not surrender to these demands.
A democratic recession has been sweeping the globe for more than two decades, and it’s picking up steam. What explains this alarming decline? In the April issue, leading scholars debate the root causes of democratic backsliding, and what can be done to stop it.
What’s causing the global democratic recession? What would a Ukrainian loss to Russia mean for democracies around the world? How should Syria approach building a just and democratic society? Don’t miss your chance to read the April issue for free!
Autocrats rely on propaganda and censorship to manipulate public opinion and maintain control. Journalists, activists, and the public must work together to counter media manipulation and keep press freedom alive.
In the April issue of the Journal of Democracy, leading scholars reassess the third wave, its underlying assumptions, and the lessons we should take from democracy’s advance and retreat over the last half-century.
Who is Nayib Bukele? Meet the president of El Salvador, the world’s most popular dictator.
Election observers are the first line of defense for democratic rights and freedoms. The essays below highlight the importance of election monitoring, especially in highly polarized, autocratic settings, the dangers that observers face, and the repercussions of rigged contests.
The Russo-Ukrainian War represents an existential clash between democracy and autocracy. A Ukrainian loss, Serhii Plokhy argues in the new issue of the Journal of Democracy, could endanger democracy across the globe.
In December 2024, South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, shocking the world and plunging the country into political turmoil. As Joan Cho and Aram Hur argue in the new issue of the Journal of Democracy, the political chaos has revealed deep-seated divisions within South Korean society and politics.
What explains democracy’s declining fortunes — governments’ failure to deliver or institutions’ failure to stop power-hungry leaders? Why Ukraine’s defeat would jeopardize the entire liberal-democratic order. And how Syria must navigate the complexities of transitional justice and sectarian violence now that the hard work of rebuilding has begun.
The Journal of Democracy essays below, free for a limited time, chart the trials and triumphs of Kenya’s democracy over the last two decades — plus key essays on the theory and practice of political power sharing.
Syria now has another chance at democracy. In our April issue, leading scholars of Syria reflect on why there is reason to hope Syria will be free, despite the difficult road ahead.
On March 19, Turkish authorities arrested opposition leader and Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on charges of corruption. Really, it was a drive by President Erdoğan to eliminate his main political rival. The following Journal of Democracy essays chronicle Erdoğan’s increasing efforts to undermine Turkish democracy, and the opposition’s efforts to fight back.
Don’t miss these must-read essays from the Journal of Democracy, free for a limited time, on the Russia-Ukraine war, artificial intelligence, illiberalism, democracy’s ability to deliver, and more.
DeepSeek’s new frontier AI model is the CCP’s most powerful tool yet for surveillance and control. The following Journal of Democracy essays show how authoritarian governments leverage emerging tech to enhance repression. Read free for a limited time.
On March 11, Ukraine agreed to a thirty-day ceasefire with Russia. But Vladimir Putin is holding out, insisting that his harsh demands must first be met. Does Putin really hold all the bargaining chips, or is he weaker than we think?
Police in Manila arrested former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte on an ICC warrant for crimes against humanity. His daughter, Vice-President Sara Duterte, was impeached a month ago. The following Journal of Democracy essays chart the twists and turns of Philippine politics and the long-running feud between the Duterte and Marcos political clans.
What might the sudden collapse of Syria’s dictatorship mean for Egypt? As Shady ElGhazaly Harb explains in a new Journal of Democracy online exclusive, the military — long Sisi’s strongest backer — may now be more tempted to turn against the autocrat.
China’s totalitarian regime is built on surveillance, censorship, and repression, with harsh penalties for anyone who dares to defy it. Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party have ambitions that extend beyond China’s borders. The following Journal of Democracy essays explore how China undermines democracy both at home and abroad. Read for free now.
Across Europe — from Spain to Germany and Sweden to Italy — right-wing parties are gaining ground. The following Journal of Democracy essays, free for a limited time, cover the European far right’s recent successes, and what they mean for the region’s democratic future.
Monday, February 24, marks the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Hundreds of thousands have been wounded or killed, Ukrainian arsenals are drained, and Western allies are divided. Even so, Putin’s effort to stir support for his war has fallen flat. New evidence shows that the Russian people don’t support the fight.
Don’t miss these must-read essays from the latest issue of the Journal of Democracy, free for a limited time, on Venezuela, Georgia, Bangladesh, global support for democracy, and more.
As artificial intelligence continues to advance at breakneck speed and world powers vie against each other in the AI arms race, democracies are searching for ways to control a technology that is transforming our lives while threatening to break our democratic guardrails.
Fed up with corrupt and increasingly autocratic rule, citizens in Georgia, Romania, Serbia, and Slovakia have been rising up in protest.
Six new podcast episodes featuring JoD authors discussing their essays with political scientists, historians, and journalists. Listen, read, and learn!
Mexico’s ruling party is using its majority to overhaul democratic institutions. Venezuela’s autocrat, Nicolás Maduro, has been sworn in for a third term after stealing an election he clearly lost. And the legacy of covid-19 is still shaping the region’s politics. The following JoD essays unpack the latest in Latin American democracy.
The war in Ukraine, stolen elections, student revolutions, and the climate crisis: The latest issue of the Journal of Democracy offers incisive analysis and illuminating debates on some of today’s biggest challenges.
Belarusians headed to the polls this past Sunday to vote for president, but the outcome is a foregone conclusion: Long-reigning autocrat Alyaksandr Lukashenka has rigged the playing field to guarantee a seventh term.
Climate change poses a grave and urgent threat to the entire planet. The consequences — natural disasters like the Los Angeles wildfires, rising food insecurity, violent conflict, increased migration — are intensifying before our eyes. How can we confront these challenges? Are “eco-authoritarian” responses the best way forward, or is more democracy the answer?
Today, President Nicolás Maduro will take the oath of office, despite a clear defeat in the July election. In the new issue of the Journal of Democracy, Javier Corrales and Dorothy Kronick explain how this came to pass.
Should Ukraine end the war with Russia at the bargaining table or in the trenches? Can democratic institutions survive when they empower minorities over the majority? Is democracy better suited than authoritarianism to confront climate change? The new issue of the Journal of Democracy provides key insights and answers to some of today’s most pressing…
Elections in nearly eighty countries around the world captured headlines throughout 2024. Meanwhile, NATO turned 75, Viktor Orbán ramped up his repression, and Bitcoin became the currency of choice for democracy activists under threat. These ten essays were the JoD’s most-read online exclusives of 2024.
The world’s biggest democracy and its brand of Hindu nationalism were top of mind for our readers in 2024. Meanwhile, this “year of elections” raised questions about liberalism, civic virtue, and democratic resilience across the world. The Journal of Democracy covered all of these ideas — plus the biggest stories of the year.
As 2024 draws to a close, democracy faces urgent threats: increasing aggression from Russia and China, rapidly advancing AI, heightened polarization, and populist leaders in India and elsewhere bending democracy to their will. Here are the Journal of Democracy’s ten most-read essays over the past month.
Journal of Democracy essays go beyond the page. Here are five recent podcasts featuring JoD authors discussing their essays with historians, journalists, students, and democracy scholars. Listen, read, and learn!
Minxin Pei, a leading expert on Chinese authoritarianism, has been writing for the Journal of Democracy since 1992. Over three decades, the Claremont McKenna political scientist has chronicled China’s transformation into a global superpower and descent into neo-Stalinism. The following ten essays comprise some of Pei’s best.
On November 19, a Hong Kong court sentenced 45 prominent prodemocracy activists to years in prison in the biggest crackdown yet under the city’s draconian, Beijing-imposed National Security Law. The Journal of Democracy essays below, free for a limited time, detail Hong Kong’s decades-long fight for freedom, and the CCP’s unrelenting repression.
Bitcoin is an indispensable tool for political dissidents in the most repressive environments, argue Alex Gladstein and Félix Maradiaga in two recent Journal of Democracy online exclusives. When dictators weaponize the financial system and obstruct all avenues of dissent, digital currency helps activists keep their operations running.
The biggest election in this “year of elections” is finally over. In contests across the world, voters have spoken. But what do their choices tell us about the state of democracy globally?
Donald Trump won a second — and, this time, overwhelming — victory on November 5. As the United States and the world take stock, the Journal of Democracy is looking back at 2016 and Trump’s unlikely rise to power.
The Journal of Democracy strives to keep you up to date on the latest developments in global democracy and autocracy. Here are our ten most-read essays over the past month.
Beijing is bent on curbing democratic freedoms and imposing totalitarianism at home and abroad. The following Journal of Democracy essays dissect China’s influence operations and offer ways for even fragile democracies to combat autocratic influence.
The “year of elections” is entering its final stretch, and the contests of 2024 have run the gamut. We saw landslides, charades, and — in democratic and authoritarian settings alike — a fair number of surprises. What were the most significant elections of the year so far?
