Has Liberalism Failed?
Our rising levels of inequality have put its ideals in crisis. These are the simple principles that can help bring it back from the edge.
JoD Online
Ecuador’s Democratic Breakdown
The small Latin American country was a brief democratic bright spot. But it appears to have fallen victim to a clash between populists and anti-populists, without a democrat in sight.
What the Freedom Agenda Can Still Teach Us
Many derided it as naïve idealism, but the vision undergirding the Freedom Agenda offers lessons for the biggest global tests of our time.
How Thai Activists Outsmarted the Generals
The regime tilted the playing field to its advantage, but it didn’t matter. Thailand’s opposition won with creativity, shrewd tactics, and a strategy that united the people.
Thailand’s Revolutionary Election
Thailand’s voters—especially its young people—have sent the country’s junta a message: They want change now. But will the military listen?
7 Lessons from Turkey’s Effort to Beat a Populist Autocrat
What the opposition did and how Erdoğan managed to escape outright defeat.
Why the French Strike
Why are the French protesting this time? Emmanuel Macron is imposing deeply unpopular reforms, and it’s one of the only ways left to check an arrogant and tone-deaf president.
Turkey’s Make-or-Break Election
The forces that brought Erdoğan to power may be his downfall in Turkey’s May 14 elections. Here are a selection of key Journal of Democracy essays from the last two decades of his rule.
Is Erdoğan on His Way Out?
The Turkish president came to power as an antiestablishment everyman. Twenty years later he is an authoritarian leader clinging to power. Will the forces that catapulted him to power be his demise?
The April 2023 Issue
Our just-released April issue, featuring “The Putin Myth” by Kathryn Stoner, is free through May 15.
Why Democracy Survives: A Debate
Even in an era haunted by democratic decline, Jason Brownlee and Kenny Miao find that wealthy democracies are unlikely to collapse in their contribution to the October 2022 Journal of Democracy. Six top experts in the field debate their conclusions.
Ashutosh Varshney’s Greatest Hits
With India’s next general election just a year away, here are five of his Journal of Democracy essays that offer critical analysis of the world’s largest democracy at a crucial time.
How Maduro Survived
The Venezuelan dictator defied sanctions, international isolation, and massive protests. He appears to have a firmer footing than he’s had in years. Now what?
Putin’s War of Recolonization
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine isn’t just another land grab. It’s an attempt to recolonize lost empire, and threatens to return us to the age of conquest.
How Women Make the World Safe for Democracy
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.
Three Essays on the Power of Women
To mark International Women’s Day, the Journal of Democracy looks at how women are shaping the fight for freedom.
The War in Ukraine One Year On
Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began one year ago. The war has inflicted a heavy toll on Russia in addition to the mass carnage in Ukraine. But Ukrainians are fighting valiantly and finding creative means of resistance.
Why Vladimir Putin’s Luck Ran Out
For twenty years, the Russian autocrat enjoyed a string of good fortune in coming to power and cementing his rule. He had raised Russia’s standing in the world. Then he invaded Ukraine.
How the World Stands Up to Putin
His military didn’t just fail. Ordinary Ukrainians, Russians, and people across the globe are creatively and nonviolently protesting Putin’s war on Ukraine, and they are making a difference.
Michael McFaul’s Greatest Hits
Ten of the former ambassador’s best JoD essays spanning the last thirty years.