April 2018, Volume 29, Issue 2
China in Xi’s “New Era”: The Return to Personalistic Rule
After Mao, Deng Xiaoping tried to institutionalize collective leadership, but this did not stop Xi Jinping from grasping all the levers of power.
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January 2018, Volume 29, Issue 1
The Case for Democratic Persistence
A review of Democracy: Stories from the Long Road to Freedom by Condoleezza Rice.
October 2016, Volume 27, Issue 4
Documents on Democracy
Excerpts from: the inauguration speech by Peruvian president Pedro Pablo Kuczynski; Ennahda party president Rachid Ghannouchi’s remarks on religion and state in Tunisia; inaugural award ceremony of the Darnal Award for Social Justice; Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte's inaugural address; Philippine senator Leila de Lima’s speech on extrajudicial killings.
July 2014, Volume 25, Issue 3
The End of the Transitions Era?
Regime change will always be a feature of political life, but we are unlikely to see again transitions to democracy on the scale of the “third wave.”
January 2018, Volume 29, Issue 1
Election Watch
Reports on elections in Argentina, Chile, the Czech Republic, Honduras, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Nepal, and Slovenia.
Why the Defenders of Liberal Democracy Need to Stand Up
If liberal norms and institutions are to prevail, they need to be defended from the left and the right.
April 2002, Volume 13, Issue 2
Argentina: Crisis and Democratic Consolidation
Argentina made headlines around the world last December as its presidency changed hands no fewer than four times in less than two weeks. Lost amid the chaos, however, were hopeful signs that the country has now turned the corner of democratic consolidation.
April 2004, Volume 15, Issue 2
Election Watch
Reports on elections in Georgia, Guatemala, Guinea, Iran, Russia, and Serbia.
October 2024, Volume 35, Issue 4
The Power of Liberal Nationalism
Democracy’s defenders have failed to appreciate the power of nationalism. They must arm themselves with emotionally compelling narratives to counter illiberal foes of free government. When they do, they are championing a winning message.
July 2025, Volume 36, Issue 3
Can Capitalism Save Democracy?
Capitalism is often blamed for democracy’s ills. But much of the blame is misplaced. It is not business capture of the state but rather state capture of business that poses the greatest danger to democracy.
October 2019, Volume 30, Issue 4
Insights from Europe’s History
A review of Democracy and Dictatorship in Europe: From the Ancien Régime to the Present Day by Sheri Berman.
April 2003, Volume 14, Issue 2
Election Watch
Reports on elections in Armenia, Djibouti, Estonia, Kenya, Kiribati, Lithuania, Madagascar, Micronesia, Montenegro, Seychelles, and South Korea.
January 2023, Volume 34, Issue 1
China’s Threat to Global Democracy
The Chinese Communist Party is deadly serious about its authoritarian designs, and it is bent on promoting them. It is time for the world’s democracies to get serious, too.
April 2018, Volume 29, Issue 2
Iran’s Exclusionary Republic
A review of Democracy in Iran: Why It Failed and How It Might Succeed by Misagh Parsa.
April 2022, Volume 33, Issue 2
Documents on Democracy: Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine
Excerpts from: letter from the Editors of Novaya Gazeta; Speech by Ukraine’s UN Ambassador, Sergiy Kyslytsya; statement by former Lithuanian president Dalia Grybauskaitė; statement by the Russian Anti-War Committee; transcript of an interrogation of an antiwar protester by Russian police; speech by Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelensky to the U.K. Parliament
July 2018, Volume 29, Issue 3
Enrolling India
A review of How India Became Democratic: Citizenship and the Making of the Universal Franchise by Ornit Shani.
A Dangerous Façade
Marine Le Pen has remade her image to obscure her far-right populism. There is a real risk French voters won’t see through it. April 2022 By Agneska Bloch On April 24, French voters will go to the polls in a rematch of the 2017 presidential election: now President Emmanuel Macron versus far-right populist Marine Le…
October 2014, Volume 25, Issue 4
External Influence and Democratization: Structure vs. Choice
Linkage and leverage largely reflect long-term structural factors, and only in certain situations can they be affected by policy choices.
October 2023, Volume 34, Issue 4
AI and Catastrophic Risk
AI with superhuman abilities could emerge within the next few years, and there is currently no guarantee that we will be able to control them. We must act now to protect democracy, human rights, and our very existence.
Polishing Off Populism in Authoritarian Thailand
Thailand’s current crisis may finally end the cycle of populism and polarization that has crippled its democratic aspirations. But it is also revealing that there are far worse forces undermining Thai democracy.