January 2025, Volume 36, Issue 1
The Perils of Climate Alarmism
Democracies — facing gridlock and polarization — often fall short. But it should be remembered that dictatorships do even more harm.
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October 2025, Volume 36, Issue 4
China’s AI-Powered Surveillance State
The Chinese Communist Party is dreaming an authoritarian techno-dream that is a democrat’s nightmare: ever more fine-grained state control made possible by using AI networks to pry and spy everywhere. But human unpredictability remains a force the party-state cannot tame.
January 2024, Volume 35, Issue 1
Why Democracy Survives Populism
Populism is a mortal threat to liberal democracy, but it rarely hits the mark. The evidence shows that these would-be strongmen require an extraordinary set of circumstances to succeed, which is why they so rarely do.
April 2024, Volume 35, Issue 2
Why Malawi’s Democracy Endures
Malawi is a “hard place” for democracy—its economy struggles and state capacity is weak. So how has it avoided the pitfalls that have doomed so many others?
April 2022, Volume 33, Issue 2
The Freedom House Survey for 2021: Authoritarians on Offense
In 2021, autocrats’ efforts to reshape the global order enabled heavier repression and brazen power grabs, while democracies faltered. Is this a tipping point?
January 2017, Volume 28, Issue 1
Tunisia’s Islamists and the “Turkish Model”
Ennahda has long felt an especially strong kinship with Turkey’s AKP, which has seen as representing a combination of piety, prosperity, and democratic credibility. How might their relationship be affected by the AKP's more recent authoritarian turn?
July 2016, Volume 27, Issue 3
The Struggle Over Term Limits in Africa: The Power of Protest
As more and more African presidents attempt to remove or circumvent constitutional term limits, African populations increasingly are mobilizing en masse, at great risk, to defend their constitutions.
October 2011, Volume 22, Issue 4
Peru’s 2011 Elections: A Surprising Left Turn
In a runoff between candidates with dubious democratic credentials, former antisystem outsider Ollanta Humala defeated Keiko Fujimori by attracting votes from the middle class.
January 2008, Volume 19, Issue 1
The Democracy Barometers (Part II): Attitudes in the Arab World
Findings from the Arab Barometer say little about whether there are likely to be transitions to democracy in the Arab world in the years ahead, but they do offer evidence that citizens' attitudes and values are not the reason that authoritarianism has persisted.
October 2020, Volume 31, Issue 4
The Bangladesh Paradox
Despite impressive achievements in socioeconomic development, Bangladesh has struggled with establishing democracy and is now effectively under one-party rule.
January 2025, Volume 36, Issue 1
A Reply to Our Critics
The authors identify and respond to four broad themes in the Climate Crisis debate.
How Repression (and Protest) Gets Repeated
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.
Statement of Editorial Independence
The Journal of Democracy is the world’s leading publication on the theory and practice of democracy. Since its founding in 1990, the Journal has engaged leading scholars, writers, and activists in critical discussions about the prospects and perils for democracy across the globe. The Journal of Democracy is housed within the National Endowment for Democracy (NED)…
Accolades
“The Journal of Democracy is far and away the most important forum for current debates about the nature and spread of liberal democracy around the world, and an indispensable tool for anybody interested in comparative politics or international relations. It is a model for how to present serious intellectual content in a clear and accessible…
Has Liberalism Failed?
Our rising levels of inequality have put its ideals in crisis. These are the simple principles that can help bring it back from the edge. | Thomas F. Remington
What Does a Humiliated Putin Mean for Russia?
While widespread violence or civil war was averted, the consequences for Russia—and Putin—could be grave.
About the Journal of Democracy
The Journal of Democracy is the world’s leading publication on the theory and practice of democracy. Since its first appearance in 1990, it has engaged both activists and intellectuals in critical discussions of the problems of and prospects for democracy around the world. Today, the Journal is at the center of debate on the major…
Is Iran on the Verge of Another Revolution?
There have been numerous waves of protest against the country’s corrupt theocracy. This time is different. It is a movement to reclaim life. Whatever happens, there is no going back. | Asef Bayat
The Curse of the Ex-Presidents
Across Latin America, former leaders are keeping a chokehold on their countries’ politics. It’s time their successors break free.