Democratic Erosion University Course Student Blog

Students enrolled in our course are encouraged to write for the course blog, and to read and comment on posts from students at other participating universities. The blog offers students the opportunity to analyze current events through the lens of the theory and case studies they engage with through the course.

These blogs reflect the views of the student authors, and not those of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

How President Trump is initiating Democratic backsliding to assert his dominance

President Trump is using legal mechanisms to slowly undermine democratic norms, such as institutional forbearance and mutual toleration to exercise and extend total control over other democratic institutions in the United States.

The Trump Administration’s Aggressive Rejection of Dissent Threatens Democracy

As the Trump administration enters its second year, Trump continues to push his strategy of executive aggrandizement, reducing institutions independence and eliminating competition. The administration has attacked any form of dissent, including the media, legislative...

Fifteen Years After the Jasmine Revolution: Is Democracy in Tunisia Backsliding?

On January 14, 2026, Tunisia celebrated 15 years since it ousted authoritarian leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. The Jasmine Revolution, named after the country’s national flower, was the catalyst for a series of uprisings throughout the Arab world in pursuit of a...

Silenced Voices: Singapore’s Government Continues to Target Media

Nov 4, 2024 | Ohio State University

The utilization of POFMA, legislation that allows government officials to punish news media that do not abide by its rules and restrictions, adds to numerous other media...

Clear Democratic Erosion in South Korea: How the Presidency of Yoon Suk-yeol is Undermining Democracy

Nov 4, 2024 | Ohio State University

"송도동, Incheon, South Korea"/ CC0 1.0 Democratic erosion can be defined as the gradual weakening of democratic institutions in a particular country or region through the...

No-Knock Warrants, Police Power, and Democratic Backsliding

Mar 13, 2022 | University of Georgia

Discussions of police violence in American cities have led to the introduction of some troubling policy changes since the initial surge of protests in the summer of 2020. Rather than addressing the...

Are We Headed for WW3? Implications for Democracy

Mar 11, 2022 | University of Georgia

As of February of 2022, continually growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine have gathered global attention. Despite preemptive economic punishments from the international community, Russia...

Democracy – The Cost of Rwanda’s Recovery?

Mar 11, 2022 | University of Chicago

Paul Kagame’s presidency has been plagued with accusations of election rigging, suppression of free speech, and unjustified imprisonment of political opponents from the very beginning. Succeeding...

Stealth Authoritarianism and the UK Police and Crime Bill

Mar 10, 2022 | Brown University

The UK’s new Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill threatens the British public’s freedom of expression, assembly, and right to protest. Among other things, the proposed bill introduces...

The Power of a “Small, Fringe Minority”

Mar 9, 2022 | University of Georgia

The past couple of years have seen some questionable encroachments on the civil liberties that ensure democracy, in an effort by governments to stop the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. From an...

The Fall of Independent Journalism in Azerbaijan

Mar 8, 2022 | Ohio State University

The Azerbaijanian government has continued to silence its own journalists. It has made conscious efforts recently to forcefully stop protests regarding freedom of speech and the wrongful...

Watchdog Journalist’s Arrest Example of Free Press Collapsing in Bangladesh

Mar 8, 2022 | Ohio State University

In May 2021, an anti-corruption journalist for the largest newspaper in Bangladesh spent a month investigating government mishandling of the COVID-19 crisis before she sat down to have a meeting...

Bhutan: A Young and Fragile Democracy Faces Barriers to Growth

Mar 8, 2022 | Ohio State University

The predominately Buddhist nation of Bhutan remains the subject of international interest as an isolated ecological haven and an area of promise for democracy. Recent years have seen increases in...

When History Repeats Itself

Mar 8, 2022 | Ohio State University

An all too familiar threat to democracy in the Philippines (Not so) Democratic History Democracy in the Philippines was nothing more than an ideal for the vast majority of the country’s history....