July 2010, Volume 21, Issue 3
The Mirage of Democracy in the DRC
Despite its historic 2006 elections, the Democratic Republic of Congo still lacks competent governance, leaving its democratic promise unfulfilled.
Articles
July 2010, Volume 21, Issue 3
Election Observers and Their Biases
Why do election monitors sometimes issue contradictory statements or endorse flawed elections? The answers are not always straightforward; in some cases, the monitors’ good intentions may undermine their credibility.
July 2010, Volume 21, Issue 3
Acts of Resistance in China
A review of China's Long March to Freedom: Grassroots Modernization by Kate Zhou.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
Democracy and Deep Divides
How do democracies deal with the deep divisions created by race, ethnicity, religion, and language? The cases of Canada, India, and the United States show that democratic institutions—notably, competitive elections and independent judiciaries—can bridge divides and build stability, but they must find a way to manage the tension between individual and group equality.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
Indonesia: The Irony of Success
Indonesia is widely lauded as a democratic success story for rolling back the military, keeping radical Islam in check, and institutionalizing democratic freedoms. But this success has had costs in terms of democratic quality.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
Indonesia: Personalities, Parties, and Voters
The 2009 electoral victories of Indonesia’s incumbent president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) and his party reveal a growing sophistication among the electorate and a robust presidency, but also a dangerously weak, highly personalistic party system.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
Do Muslims Vote Islamic?
Those who warn against efforts to promote free elections in Muslim-majority countries often point to the threat posed by Islamic parties that stand ready to use democracy against itself. But what does the record really show regarding the ability of Islamic parties to win over Muslim voters?
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
The Ex-Presidents
What makes elected leaders step down at the appointed hour, and what do they have to look forward to once their terms end? A look at the political afterlives of world leaders tells us that the future prospects of presidents and premiers may well affect their behavior while in office.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
The Ballot and the Badge: Democratic Policing
In emerging democracies and postconflict countries, improved policing is almost always urgently required. Yet international-assistance efforts in this area pay almost no attention to the crucial need to ensure that the new-model police are not only effective, but democracy-friendly.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
Trouble in Central America: Honduras Unravels
A Central American military once again returned to the political center stage in 2009, but this had less to do with power-hungry generals than with warring civilian elites whose respect for liberal-democratic principles proved to be questionable at best.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
Trouble in Central America: Guatemala on the Brink
Strange and unsettling turns of events further roiled the already-troubled waters of Guatemalan political life in 2009, driving the crime-ridden country’s shaky democracy to the brink.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
Trouble in Central America: Crime, Hard Times, and Discontent
Amid a climate of rising crime and insecurity as well as economic uncertainty produced by the global downturn, can the study of public opinion and attitudes reveal which Central American countries are most at risk of democratic reversals?
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
The Freedom House Survey for 2009: The Erosion Accelerates
Although the overall state of freedom in the world has clearly improved over the last two decades, more recent trends are worrisome. In 2009, declines in freedom outnumbered gains for the fourth consecutive year.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
Mozambique’s Slide into One Party Rule
Once touted as a regional success story, Mozambique has been backsliding toward one-party-dominant rule, and has now slipped off the Freedom House list of electoral democracies. How and why did this happen?
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
What Makes Legislatures Strong?
A review of The Handbook of National Legislatures: A Global Survey by M. Steven Fish and Matthew Kroenig, and Legislative Power in Emerging African Democracies edited by Joel D. Barkan.
January 2010, Volume 21, Issue 1
Democracy’s Past and Future
The Editors' introduction to the Journal of Democracy's Twentieth Anniversary Issue.
January 2010, Volume 21, Issue 1
Still Bowling Alone? The Post-9/11 Split
The crisis of the 9/11 terrorist attacks has sparked a surge of increased civic engagement by young people in the United States, but there is also evidence of a growing divide along class lines.
January 2010, Volume 21, Issue 1
Twenty-Five Years, Fifteen Findings
A coauthor of the pathbreaking study Transitions from Authoritarian Rule reflects on the lessons that he has learned about democratic transition and consolidation since the publication of this work nearly 25 years ago.
January 2010, Volume 21, Issue 1
Schmitter’s Retrospective: A Few Dissenting Notes
Another coauthor of Transitions from Authoritarian Rule questions whether his former collaborator is underrating the current dangers to democracy.
January 2010, Volume 21, Issue 1
Transitions to the Rule of Law
While we have witnessed many transitions to multiparty systems, it has proven much harder for countries to attain a genuine rule of law. We need to know more about the origins of the rule of law in order to promote it successfully today.