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How the World’s Most Popular Dictator Wins

• Manuel Meléndez-Sánchez

El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele may be overwhelmingly popular, but he wasn’t going to let his electoral ambitions hinge on being well-liked. Instead, he rigged the playing field before the first vote was cast.

How Civil Society Can Confront the China Challenge — And Win

• Kevin Sheives
• Caitlin Dearing Scott

The CCP is engaged in a sprawling campaign to undermine democracy. Governments too often can be lumbering or weak in response. Look to civil society for the creativity and skill to keep the CCP on its heels.

Botswana’s Misunderstood “Miracle”

• Samuel Anim

The country’s 2024 presidential contest was a big surprise, as voters elected a new party for the first time. Despite decades of dominant-party rule, a strong democratic culture has long been ingrained in Botswana.

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.

Defending Democracy in an Age of Sharp Power

• William J. Dobson
• Tarek Masoud
• Christopher Walker

Explores how authoritarian regimes are deploying “sharp power” to undermine democracies from within by weaponizing universities, institutions, media, technology, and entertainment industries.

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Bolivia’s Silent Destruction

• Jhanisse Vaca Daza

Bolivia’s Amazon forests are becoming scorched earth, with millions of acres lost each year to raging fires. Worse, this disaster is being caused by a government more interested in corrupt profits than protecting its people and wildlife.

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How the Duterte Clan Is Remaking the Marcos Playbook

• Cecilia Lero

Strongman nostalgia, conspiracy theories, and lies. It’s a powerful blend that keeps populists in power. In the Philippines, political clans have weaponized these messages against each other.

European Disintegration? A Fraying Union

‘Their Control Cannot Be Flawless’

What are the true lessons from Tiananmen Square? Why does nonviolent resistance offer the best chance of challenging the CCP? Hu Ping, a leading Chinese dissident, reflects on the mistakes that were made and what it will take to succeed next time.

How a Pastor Found the Courage to Defy a Dictator

• Evan Mawarire

Evan Mawarire never thought of himself as a revolutionary. In a gripping new memoir, he tells the story of how he went from a humble clergyman to the leader of a movement that helped the Zimbabwean people find their voice.

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There Will Be No Islamist Revolution

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The Resilience of Democracy by Eduardo Posada-Carbó

In "The Resilience of Democracy," Eduardo Posada-Carbó reflects on the 20th Anniversary of the Journal of Democracy.

January 22, 2010

How Women Make the World Safe for Democracy

• Joslyn N. Barnhart
• Robert F. Trager

The suffragists imagined that a greater role for women in democratic politics would lead to a more peaceful world. Few realize how right they were.

People Say Democracy Isn’t Working

• Joel Day

So, why don’t they want to fix it?