JoD Online

Last December, a group of elite special-forces members attempted to overthrow Benin’s elected government. This was just the latest in a spate of African coup attempts, both successful and unsuccessful, in the last half-decade.

Since U.S. forces removed Venezuelan autocrat Nicolás Maduro on January 3, the country’s future has been in question. Will the longtime Chavista regime remain in charge, or will Venezuela democratize?

Liberal democracy combines majority rule with the protection of minority rights. Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt wrote last year in the Journal of Democracy that while some institutions which limit the power of electoral majorities are essential to liberal democracy, others are not only unnecessary but may even distort political competition.

In recent years, we have seen young people across the world take to the streets in huge numbers. Propelled by economic precarity, exclusion from power, and elite corruption, Gen Z protesters have been risking severe repression despite little hope of bringing lasting change.

Uganda’s longtime ruler, Yoweri Museveni, and pop star–turned–freedom fighter Bobi Wine, along with six other candidates, are facing off today in the country’s presidential election.

U.S. forces captured Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife and delivered them to New York City to stand trial on charges of drug trafficking and narcoterrorism. Maduro may be gone, but his regime remains intact with his appointed deputy now at the reins.

When a democratically elected president acts undemocratically, how do you hold him accountable? It isn’t easy. Most leaders — even those who attempt to hold power through coups — evade justice.

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.