2195 Results
July 2013, Volume 24, Issue 3
The Hashemite monarchy still fails to understand the challenges that threaten Jordan’s political order. The old playbook of limited, manipulated reform is no longer enough, but key players fail to realize it.
April 2012, Volume 23, Issue 2
Do democracy and good governance necessarily go hand-in-hand? In most Southeast Asian countries, a gap exists between the two. How should we understand good governance in an authoritarian context? And what does poor governance mean for the legitimacy of democracy?
April 2008, Volume 19, Issue 2
The legislature is emerging as a "player" in some African countries, though not in others. What is the relationship between legislative development and democratic consolidation in Africa?
January 2005, Volume 16, Issue 1
Modest progress in the muslim-majority countries is complemented by mass mobilization for democracy and freedom in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russia ranks as Not Free for the first time since the fall of communism.
January 2004, Volume 15, Issue 1
By expanding itself eastward, the EU has not so much settled the questions surrounding the “borders” of Europe as it has displaced them, changing their focus to take in new areas and new issues.
April 2003, Volume 14, Issue 2
As Latin America suffers from its worst economic crisis in decades, the reform of political institutions remains the region’s best hope.
October 2020, Volume 31, Issue 4
Despite impressive achievements in socioeconomic development, Bangladesh has struggled with establishing democracy and is now effectively under one-party rule.
October 2022, Volume 33, Issue 4
The share of Ukrainians who endorse democracy as the best form of government has risen fast in short order, standing now at more than three-quarters. New data reveal a surprising explanation behind this remarkable shift.
July 2025, Volume 36, Issue 3
We must face an uncomfortable truth: Democracies often fail to reverse the damage after an authoritarian lapse, if they manage to recover at all. If we are to make our political systems more resilient, we must steel democracy against authoritarianism before it is too late.
July 2023, Volume 34, Issue 3
When Israel’s new government introduced proposals that threatened the judiciary’s independence, the country erupted in protest. These tensions will not soon end. Likud, once a center-right party, is now as populist as the European far right.
October 2025, Volume 36, Issue 4
When the Soviet Union fell, Cuba did not democratize but instead was turned into a raw kleptocracy by Communist Party insiders. Decades later, this “mafia” has driven the country into the worst crisis in its history.
July 2024, Volume 35, Issue 3
The Salvadoran president’s “iron fist” policies have become one of the most popular political brands in Latin America. But the very reasons that explain his success in El Salvador point to why his repressive approach will not succeed elsewhere.
October 2025, Volume 36, Issue 4
Conventional wisdom says that, once in power, opposition parties will return backsliding countries to the democratic path. In reality, not only is this not true, but it is not uncommon for the opposition to adopt the autocratic habits of the regime they replaced.
October 2021, Volume 32, Issue 4
Can we recognize the symptoms of backsliding before it’s too late? Though the signals are sometimes faint, a new study of sixteen cases around the world reveals key dynamics common to all.
January 2002, Volume 13, Issue 1
After September 11 and the start of the U.S.-led war on terrorists in Afghanistan, the Pakistani military regime of Pervez Musharraf found itself at the center of world attention. What do these new and dramatically changed circumstances portend for a possible return to elected, civilian rule in Islamabad?
July 2001, Volume 12, Issue 3
Following a military coup in 1999 and flawed and violence-ridden elections in 2000, democracy in Côte d’Ivoire faces an uphill battle against the forces of xenophobia and ethnic chauvinism.
July 2000, Volume 11, Issue 3
Democracy is spreading everywhere except in the Arab world. Arab elections are an immense masquerade. Corrupt dictatorships seek to stifle freedom of thought and to control the flow of information.
April 2002, Volume 13, Issue 2
In recent years, new types of nondemocratic government have come to the fore, notably competitive authoritarianism. Such regimes, though not democratic, feature arenas of contestation in which opposition forces can challenge, and even oust, authoritarian incumbents.
By Guoguang Wu | Beijing’s focus has been on strong and steady economic growth for decades. But China’s leader has just put an end to that era. For Xi, it’s only about power—at home and abroad.
