National PhD Award recipient 2004 BA 1993 Routledge 2013 book

How to Dictator-Proof Your Money

• Alex Gladstein

Cash is king, even if you are an activist leading a democratic movement against some of the world’s worst dictators. That’s why Bitcoin has quickly become the currency of choice for dissidents working everywhere.

Africa’s Leaders for Life

• Alexander Noyes
• John Reece

The continent’s aspiring dictators are attacking term limits with a vengeance, finding new ways to avoid handing over power. But citizens are overwhelmingly against it — and can help keep their leaders in check.

External Influence and Democratization: The Revenge of Geopolitics

Getting Over the Third Wave

• Marc F. Plattner

Samuel Huntington’s classic theory offered a new way of understanding democracy’s global trajectory. But amid rising populism and increasingly aggressive authoritarian leaders, has Huntington’s thesis outlived its usefulness?

Hope and Fear in Syria

• Elizabeth Parker-Magyar

The brutal regime of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad fell in a week. Syrians have been preparing for this moment for years.

Save la République!

• Moshik Temkin

Why Emmanuel Macron’s reelection hangs on him winning support from the very people he has ignored most.

Why Alexei Navalny Mattered in Life and Still Matters in Death

• Kathryn Stoner

Vladimir Putin may have imprisoned, tortured, and killed the brilliant opposition leader, but even now Navalny is a threat to the corrupt autocracy he has built.

This Is Not the End of Putin’s Troubles

• Kathryn Stoner

Yevgeny Prigozhin’s rebellion has exposed the fundamental instability of Putinism.

Putin Just Learned Why You Don’t Trust Mercenaries

• Zoltan Barany

The Russian autocrat forgot an age-old truth about working with common criminals and soldiers for hire.

The (Final) Rise of Anwar Ibrahim

• Sophie Lemière

The democratic icon’s path to prime minister has been tortuous and long. But is Malaysia’s pluralism slipping away precisely when Anwar is getting his shot to lead the nation?

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The End of the Duterte Dynasty?

• Richard Javad Heydarian

The ICC arrest of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte is a shocking blow for the Duterte clan, and the Marcos family isn’t letting up. Is this the political last stand for the Dutertes?

The Man Who Stood Up to Vladimir Putin

• Lucian Kim

It is almost a year since the death of Alexei Navalny. The Russian opposition leader sought to channel Russian nationalism as a challenge to Putin’s autocracy. He gave everything in the fight.

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Why He May Soon Be Remembered as “Putin the Weak”

• Michael McFaul

The Russian autocrat wanted to go down in history on par with Russia’s greatest leaders. He is increasingly looking like one of its weakest.

Why DeepSeek Is So Dangerous

• Valentin Weber

The Chinese Communist Party’s newest AI advance is making repression smarter, cheaper, and more deadly. Even worse, they aim to export it to the world.

How Repression (and Protest) Gets Repeated

• Wichuta Teeratanabodee
• Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom

We can learn a lot about the crackdown in Hong Kong if we compare it to Thailand—and vice versa. Autocrats and activists are learning from each other in real time.

Is Democracy Surviving the “Year of Elections”?

• John K. Glenn

Millions of voters are casting ballots in a string of elections across the globe. At the midyear point, how well is democracy holding up?

How to Defend the Vote from Authoritarians

• Giorgi Meladze
• Srdja Popovic

Georgia’s opposition is facing a pivotal election. But it isn’t enough to win: They need to be prepared to move quickly, mobilize the public, and force the regime to concede.