October 2024, Volume 35, Issue 4
Political violence is rising in wealthy democracies. Polarized societies and bitter party politics are putting candidates and election officials in serious peril. Political leaders, more than anyone, have the power to stoke or stamp out this dangerous cycle of violence.
July 2024, Volume 35, Issue 3
If democracies did a better job “delivering” for their citizens, so the thinking goes, people would not be so ready to embrace antidemocratic alternatives. Not so. This conventional wisdom about democratic backsliding is seldom true and often not accurate at all.
April 2024, Volume 35, Issue 2
The problem for democracy today is not capitalism; it is a decline in public honesty and civility. But there is an opportunity to revive our sense of national community, if we seize it.
July 2024, Volume 35, Issue 3
Democracy is on dangerous ground when its fundamental rules become the main point of political contention. This is where we are today. The truth is that the institutions, not just the players, need to change.
Orbán Is Isolating Hungary from the World | Sándor Ésik
The Hungarian leader appears to be working overtime at fraying the country’s ties with even its longstanding friends and allies — and the strain is beginning to show.
What Burkina Faso’s Tragic History Teaches Us | John Chin, Haleigh Bartos, and Aleksaundra Handrinos
Ten years after the revolution, the lessons for protecting a budding democracy and guarding against violent extremism are clear.
Who Is the Real Javier Milei? | Daniel Torres Checa
He is rude, foul-mouthed, and one of the most popular politicians in the world. Like it or not, Argentina’s chainsaw-wielding president is the new face of populism.
News & Updates
November 2024
The Journal of Democracy strives to keep you up to date on the latest developments in global democracy and autocracy. Here are our ten most-read essays over the past month.
November 2024
Beijing is bent on curbing democratic freedoms and imposing totalitarianism at home and abroad. The following Journal of Democracy essays dissect China’s influence operations and offer ways for even fragile democracies to combat autocratic influence.
Most Read
Three factors help to explain the historically wide split between the electoral and popular vote counts: economic and political fundamentals, polarization among voters over identity issues, and the sharply divergent ways in which the candidates chose to address these issues.
In a deeply polarized United States, ordinary people now consume and espouse once-radical ideas and are primed to commit violence.
Forget his excuses. Russia’s autocrat doesn’t worry about NATO. What terrifies him is the prospect of a flourishing Ukrainian democracy.
The case of Hungary shows how autocrats can rig elections legally, using legislative majorities to change the law and neutralize the opposition at every turn, no matter what strategy they adopt.
Under Narendra Modi, India is maintaining the trappings of democracy while it increasingly harasses the opposition, attacks minorities, and stifles dissent. It can still reverse course, but the damage is mounting.
Want curated Journal of Democracy content directly in your inbox each week?
Follow the link below to receive the latest from the Journal of Democracy.
