The April 2023 Issue
Our just-released April issue, featuring “The Putin Myth” by Kathryn Stoner, is free through May 15.
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April 2012, Volume 23, Issue 2
How Poland Promotes Democracy
Among a new generation of international democracy promoters—often former recipients of democracy assistance themselves—Poland stands out. Its efforts, though mostly in its own neighborhood, show the importance of combining direct assistance with quiet diplomacy.
JoD Authors Speak
Six new podcast episodes featuring JoD authors discussing their essays with political scientists, historians, and journalists. Listen, read, and learn!
Why Does the Kremlin Bother Holding Sham Elections?
Everyone knows that Russia’s election is a fraud. The problem is no dictator ever feels safe enough, and Putin thinks even a fake election will signal to his cronies that he’s still in charge.
The Top 10 Journal of Democracy Essays of 2023
Our most-read essays of 2023 covered the state of India’s democracy, Russia’s war on Ukraine, the protests in Iran, and more.
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…
Winter 1991, Volume 2, Issue 1
Documents on Democracy
Excerpts from: the Madrid Declaration; Popular Movement of Ukraine (Rukh) party president Ivan Drach’s speech to the Congress; the Charter of Paris.
April 2015, Volume 26, Issue 2
Documents on Democracy
Excerpts from: newly elected Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena’s campaign manifesto; Newsweek Polska's interview with Boris Nemtsov; opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim's statement of innocence issued after the Federal Court of Malaysia upheld his conviction and sentence; a statement issued by UN special rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association Maina Kiai.
July 2014, Volume 25, Issue 3
The Maidan and Beyond: The Media’s Role
Media, both new and traditional and both Russian and Ukrainian, played a major role in the EuroMaidan story from the very outset.
July 2025, Volume 36, Issue 3
Documents on Democracy
Maria Sarungi Tsehai refuses to be silent; Ekrem İmamoğlu’s letter from prison; a Venezuelan opposition leader’s final message before his arrest; a 19-year-old Russian dissident’s final court statement; Dominican protesters and journalists march for freedom of the press; and the Tiananmen Mothers remember the massacre.
Democracy’s Most Dangerous Assumptions
It is tempting to believe the horrors of the past will not haunt our future. Vladimir Putin is proving that we hold such beliefs at our peril.
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. | By Ghia Nodia
April 2023, Volume 34, Issue 2
Documents on Democracy
Zelensky’s speech on the first anniversary of the full-scale Russian invasion; “Us–You–Them” by Ukrainian author Haska Shyyan; Belarusian human-rights defender Ales Bialiatski’s Nobel lecture; Activist Lhadon Tethong’s testimony on human-rights abuses against Tibetans in China; Activist Miriam Atahi’s remarks on women-led protests against Taliban rule in Afghanistan.
Putin’s Big Gamble
The Kremlin’s order to call up Russians to fight in Ukraine risks massive protests. It’s the riskiest decision of Putin’s rule, and it could lead to his undoing. | By Robert Person
The Legacy of a True Russian Patriot
Alexei Navalny loved Russia and was willing to risk everything for it. It is hard to grasp the magnitude of his death for his people and his country.
January 2020, Volume 31, Issue 1
Disinformation Disorientation
A review of This Is Not Propaganda: Adventures in the War Against Reality by Peter Pomerantsev.
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.