July 2026, Volume 37, Issue 3
Opposition party statement in Turkey; Letters from a democracy activist in prison from Hong Kong; democracy activist award speech from Cuba; human rights violations in Egypt; and transnational repression in Zambia.
April 2026, Volume 37, Issue 2
The world’s “middle powers” were once bastions of defense for a liberal rules-based international order. But no more. A new kind of authoritarian middle power has emerged, undermining democratic norms and safeguards.
January 2024, Volume 35, Issue 1
Egypt’s general-turned-president has spent lavishly, cemented the military’s political and economic control, and, afraid of suffering Mubarak’s fate, become increasingly repressive. But with crushing inflation and everyday people suffering, is Sisi losing his grip?
October 2019, Volume 30, Issue 4
In 2011–13, the undemocratic political outlook of both secular and Islamist actors helped to ensure the failure of democracy in Egypt. Today, the populace appears to have backed away from democratic demands, yet pockets of resilient activism offer a basis for hope.
July 2019, Volume 30, Issue 3
The military-backed regime of President al-Sisi seems secure, but study of the Egyptian internet reveals that the regime has failed to win over the young.
October 2015, Volume 26, Issue 4
A close look at secular parties in the Middle East today raises doubts about whether they are ready for prime time.
October 2013, Volume 24, Issue 4
The July 2013 military takeover has squashed democratic hopes in Egypt, at least for now. How did things go so wrong, and what lessons are to be drawn from this lamentable episode? Listen to the podcast with Author Nathan Brown [mp3]
January 2013, Volume 24, Issue 1
Egypt’s liberals, though they do not dominate political life and perhapsnever will, remain a crucial force in shaping the country’s politics.
April 2012, Volume 23, Issue 2
Of all the “Arab Spring” countries, so far only Tunisia has managed to make a transition to democracy. Tunisians now have a chance to show the world a new example of how religion, society, and the state can relate to one another under democratic conditions.
January 2012, Volume 23, Issue 1
Contrary to popular wisdom, emerging democracies might be better off with a majoritarian electoral system rather than one based on proportional representation.
January 2012, Volume 23, Issue 1
Evidence from waves of democratization shows proportional election systems, however imperfect, to be the better option in most contexts.
July 2011, Volume 22, Issue 3
Egyptians threw off the thirty-year dictatorship of Hosni Mubarak, but now find themselves under essentially the same military tutelage that they had hoped to escape.
July 2011, Volume 22, Issue 3
Widely reported as “Facebook revolutions,” the upheavals in Tunisia and Egypt show that social media not only can ignite protests but also can help to determine their political consequences.
July 2008, Volume 19, Issue 3
The rise of Islamist parties poses new challenges to efforts to understand the relationship between Islam and democracy. A diverse group of authors investigates this new phenomenon and its implications for the future of democracy in the Middle East.
July 2008, Volume 19, Issue 3
The journalistic and policy communities have been alive with speculation as to whether Islamist groups involved in politics—including Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood and Palestine’s Hamas— are true believers in democracy or calculating pragmatists who, in Steven Cook’s words, are “seeking to use democratic procedures in order to advance an antidemocratic agenda.”
July 2008, Volume 19, Issue 3
Read the full essay here. Political Islam is often cited as the key challenge to democratization in Muslim nations, but deep currents of authoritarianism may prove more of an obstacle. Traditions of monarchy, military rule, and weak civic institutions block the path of democratic transition throughout the Muslim world. Political Islam does of course present…
July 2008, Volume 19, Issue 3
Read the full essay here. This article makes a case of the basic distinction between Islam and Islamism and presents three central arguments: 1. through religious reforms and a rethinking of the Islamic doctrine, the cultural system of Islam can be put in harmony with democracy, 2. this (first) argument does not apply to Islamism…
January 2006, Volume 17, Issue 1
Strategies based on transition pacts that reduce rulers' risks and cushion their retreat from total power may be the most promising route to democracy in the Arab world.
October 2002, Volume 13, Issue 4
Since a tenuous political opening a decade ago, the Mubarak regime has systematically asphyxiated democracy in Egypt.
October 2000, Volume 11, Issue 4
An Egyptian civil-society leader responds to the closing down of his organization and the allegations against him by state prosecutors.
Fall 1990, Volume 1, Issue 4
A review of Unruly Corporatism: The Associational Life in Twentieth-Century Egypt, by Robert Bianchi.
The pillars of Sisi’s regime are straining, and Assad’s collapse is raising the pressure. If Egypt is going to follow Syria’s path, these are signals to watch.
The economy is spiraling, public frustration is mounting, and the regime is becoming more repressive. The next time Egyptians come to the streets, they will be looking for more than promises and free elections.
Egypt’s upcoming presidential elections are a sham. But the opposition can still take advantage of this moment to push for genuine reforms that the country desperately needs.
