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.

Donald Trump the Nazi Reincarnate?: Godwin’s Law and How This Phenomenon is Counterproductive to Understanding Democratic Erosion

What do we hope to accomplish when comparing President Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler, a tyrannical perpetrator of genocide?

The Russia-Ukraine War Bodes Poorly for Democracy, But Not in the Way You Think

The Russia-Ukraine War is a serious threat to global democracy through the growing wave of isolationism in the United States, an entity that has typically been at the forefront of fighting authoritarianism across the world.

The Trump Administration’s Attack on USAID

The Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle USAID, increase concerns about democratic backsliding as it could result in a trend with the executive undermining institutional legitimacy.

Georgia’s Gerrymandering, Legal Institutions, and Democratic Backsliding

Oct 29, 2023 | Arizona State University

A federal judge ruled that Georgia’s congressional and state legislative districts must be redrawn prior to the 2024 election. The report concluded that the Republican-drawn...

Don’t Cry Wolf About Threats To Democracy

Oct 29, 2023 | Arizona State University

In the past few years, we’ve witnessed many serious threats to American democracy. Some that loom large include: the January 6 Capitol riot, President Trump’s “perfect...

Is Populism Thriving during the Pandemic?

Oct 14, 2021 | University of Georgia

Muntaha Syedah Qadri For the past year and a half, the pandemic caused chaos to occur. The pandemic invoked a serious level of stress on everyone around the world. It has caused the good and bad to...

Viktor Orbán’s Consolidation of Power in Hungary

Oct 14, 2021 | University of Georgia

Hungary joined the EU in 2004, but only six years later, Viktor Orbán came into power, and Hungary’s democratic institutions began to unravel. Hungary has not enjoyed as long a history of democracy...

Austria’s Teetering Democracy: Why the Far-Right Movement Is Not Going Away

Oct 14, 2021 | University of Georgia

When the Austrian Freedom Party was given a seat at the table of Austrian government and politics in 2000, the international community’s jaw-dropped. The voice against democracy was given a seat at...

Authoritarian Reversion in Afghanistan

Oct 14, 2021 | University of Georgia

As Afghanistan has fallen back into the hands of the militant Taliban group, what does this mean for civil and political rights of people in the country? Introduction...

Electronic Voting Poses a New Threat to Russia’s Compromised Election Integrity

Oct 14, 2021 | University of Georgia

2021 Election Summary In September 2021, Russia held a three-day parliamentary election. The head of the Central Election Commission (CEC), Ella Pamfilova, announced...

How America’s Nation Building Efforts Around the World Is a Downfall for Democracy

Oct 14, 2021 | University of Georgia

How It All Started In the latter part of 2001, The United States went into Afghanistan to overtake the Taliban government in attempts to go after Al-Qaeda after the September 11th attacks . This is...

Democratic Backsliding: The Spanish and Venezuelan Example

Oct 14, 2021 | University of Georgia

The 20th century has shown us that there are many reasons for democracies to experience backsliding. Many of the reasons for backsliding are preventable, yet they still happen. The results of...

Media: The Catalyst Behind Erosive Polarization

Oct 13, 2021 | University of Georgia

While there is hope for America’s future as a democracy, there are serious democratic backsliding issues at the present moment. Increased polarization is widely accepted as a pre-cursor to this...

The Effect of Vaccine Mandates on American Democracy

Oct 13, 2021 | University of Georgia

The recent introduction of vaccine mandates to states and workplaces across the United States has only served to further the political polarization in the country, pushing it into the direction of...