
How Putin’s War in Ukraine Has Ruined Russia
In a matter of weeks, the Russian autocrat has erased his country’s prosperity in a feckless attempt to rebuild a doomed empire.
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In a matter of weeks, the Russian autocrat has erased his country’s prosperity in a feckless attempt to rebuild a doomed empire.
Steven Radelet will discuss his essay "The Rise of the World's Poorest Countries" at NED on Oct. 26 at noon.
October 19, 2015
Washington Post warns of "Democracy in Retreat," cites new JoD book, Authoritarianism Goes Global.
March 14, 2016
Most of the world’s democracies remain extremely vulnerable to sharp-power threats. The following Journal of Democracy essays explore how authoritarians weaponize universities, technologies, media, entertainment, and culture to attempt to crack democracy’s foundations.
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.
Cash is king, even if you are an activist leading a democratic movement against some of the world’s worst dictators. That’s why Bitcoin has quickly become the currency of choice for dissidents working everywhere.
ABOUT THE EVENT The reasons for the failure of democracy to take hold in Russia and for its current backsliding in Central Europe are complex, but one important and often neglected factor is what Ivan Krastev (in a July 2018 article in the Journal of Democracy) has called “Imitation and Its Discontents.” Following the collapse of communism, the…
November 5, 2018
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.
In many parts of the world, democracy seems to be under threat. Populism is on the rise, as is public dissatisfaction with such key features of liberal democracy as political parties, representative institutions, and minority rights. Even in the long-established democratic regimes of Western Europe and the United States, attachment to democracy is weakening, particularly…
January 10, 2017
In 2022, we began publishing shorter, exclusively online pieces. No topic mattered more to you than Russia’s disastrous war in Ukraine. We also published essays from the sharpest minds on protests in China and Iran, instability in Pakistan, and more.
Founded on 1 October 1949, the People’s Republic of China has entered a new age, as Xi centralizes power in his own hands and abandons the ideological openness of the reform era. Carl Minzner explains why China is entering a dangerous new chapter.
Don’t miss these must-read essays from the Journal of Democracy, free for a limited time, on the Russia-Ukraine war, artificial intelligence, illiberalism, democracy’s ability to deliver, and more.
A critique of Francis Fukuyama's October 2013 Journal of Democracy essay "Democracy and the Quality of the State."
October 19, 2013
Looming “catastrophe” must not be used to justify authoritarianism. Solutions premised on unchecked power would bring their own risks of catastrophe.
These excerpts pertain to Rachid al-Ghannouchi and the challenge of blending Islam and democracy.
October 3, 2011
Will artificial intelligence end democracy? Plus: Why global democracy is proving to be far more resilient than people think; how African church leaders became unlikely defenders of democracy; and the ways in which vast networks of hidden wealth are eating away at our democratic institutions.
On Tuesday, Georgia’s Parliament passed a controversial new law that would brand NGOs and media organizations receiving foreign funding as “foreign agents.” Countries across the globe are following the Russian model and painting liberal-democratic values as malign foreign interference. Read about the strategies autocrats are devising to repress civil society and stifle dissent.
It may be the best weapon we have for holding autocrats accountable for their crimes, and the world’s democracies are beginning to rally behind it.
The May 2025 Philippine midterms are just the latest chapter in a yearslong feud between the Marcos and Duterte clans. These essays below plot the twists and turns of the political drama, and explain why it’s really a diversion from meaningful democratic reform.
The perennial Slovak politician practices a hardnosed, vengeful form of politics. It is also bad news for the future of Slovakian democracy.