October 2016, Volume 27, Issue 4
Iraq’s Year of Rage
Iraqis of all ethnic and sectarian stripes are fed up with the ineptitude and corruption of their political leaders, parties, and government institutions.
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July 2016, Volume 27, Issue 3
Xi Jinping’s Maoist Revival
Far from being a reformer, as some had hoped, President Xi Jinping has launched the most sweeping ideological campaign seen in China since Mao. Xi is mixing nationalism, Leninism, and Maoism in ways that he hopes will cement continued one-party Communist rule.
January 2023, Volume 34, Issue 1
Why Europe’s Right Embraces Gay Rights
After long condemning gay rights, much of Europe’s political right now champions them. They have made welcoming gay voters a sign of modernity and openness—and a tool for stirring opposition to Muslim immigrants.
January 2023, Volume 34, Issue 1
Lula’s Second Act
Brazil’s charismatic former president is back, but there will be no honeymoon for the left. He won by a sliver, and his opponents on the right were empowered by the same election.
July 2022, Volume 33, Issue 3
Putin’s Inevitable Invasion
Why did Russia invade Ukraine? And why are Russian forces fighting so poorly? The internal logic of its personalist dictatorship is to blame.
January 2022, Volume 33, Issue 1
How Zambia’s Opposition Won
Halting a decade of democratic backsliding, Haikainde Hichilema defeated an increasingly iron-fisted incumbent president. How did he do it and can others learn from his example?
January 2022, Volume 33, Issue 1
Countering Beijing’s Media Manipulation
China is expanding its global media footprint, aggressively peddling its preferred narratives and stifling criticism of its policies, all the while undermining free expression, public debate, and electoral integrity in more open societies.
April 2021, Volume 32, Issue 2
Tanzania: The Authoritarian Landslide
With brutal resolve, the ruling party sought not merely to win an election, but to annihilate the opposition. Now, with President John Magufuli gone, that strategic rationale will likely only grow stronger.
October 2020, Volume 31, Issue 4
Policing the Police: U.S. and European Models
Hyperlocalized U.S. policing both upholds and corrodes democratic principles. Although some aspects of Europe’s model are nonstarters in the United States, Americans crave centralized enforcement of rules against abusive policing.
July 2020, Volume 31, Issue 3
Social Media Disruption: Nigeria’s WhatsApp Politics
The encrypted messaging service WhatsApp has become an increasingly important tool for “fake news” in Nigeria, while weakening government control of information and broadening opportunities for political participation.
April 2020, Volume 31, Issue 2
The Pushback Against Populism: The Rise and Fall of Greece’s New Illiberalism
Escaping the populist trap requires reversing the sequence that brings populists to power in the first place. The 2019 triumph of Greece’s liberal New Democracy party shows how victory can be achieved.
January 2020, Volume 31, Issue 1
The Puzzle of Authoritarian Legitimacy
Why do East and Southeast Asia’s autocracies enjoy more support from their publics than do the region’s democracies?
October 2019, Volume 30, Issue 4
The Failure of Europe’s Mainstream Parties
Beyond the commonly cited economic and cultural anxieties afflicting many Europeans, a key factor enabling the rise of populism across Europe has been the failure of mainstream parties on both the left and the right to offer clear and credible policy alternatives.
July 2019, Volume 30, Issue 3
Aspirations and Realities in Africa: The DRC’s Electoral Sideshow
Stymied in his effort to secure a third term, President Joseph Kabila manipulated the electoral process in order to secure a compliant successor.
January 2019, Volume 30, Issue 1
Cambodia’s Transition to Hegemonic Authoritarianism
A crackdown on the opposition, followed by sham parliamentary elections in July 2018, has deepened and extended the decades-long personalist dictatorship of Hun Sen.
April 2018, Volume 29, Issue 2
China in Xi’s “New Era”: A Play for Global Leadership
It has long been hoped that China would be integrated into the liberal world order. That particular “China dream” has ended, however, as Beijing seeks to reshape the world order, with itself at the center.
April 2018, Volume 29, Issue 2
Macedonia: A New Beginning?
This small Balkan country has been plagued with crises of identity both internal and external. But recent developments, including a democratic change of government via the ballot box, have created an opportunity to find a better path.
April 2017, Volume 28, Issue 2
Jordan and Morocco: The Palace Gambit
Two of the Arab world’s more liberal regimes, the kingdoms of Jordan and Morocco, are sometimes said to be evolving toward democracy. Is this true, and what are the longer-term prospects for these two monarchies?
April 2016, Volume 27, Issue 2
Latin America’s New Turbulence: The End of the Kirchner Era
With a skillfully conveyed message of managerial competence and an electorate disenchanted by a floundering economy and the outgoing incumbent’s confrontational style, Mauricio Macri demonstrated that a non-Peronist can win Argentina’s presidency.
July 2015, Volume 26, Issue 3
Authoritarianism Goes Global: Election Monitoring vs. Disinformation
Nonpartisan election monitoring has helped to foster democratization over the last thirty years, but now dictators are trying to sabotage it, often by spreading lies and confusion.