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 are student blog posts written by student participants in the Democratic Erosion Course. These posts were not written by nor represent the views of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

The Informational Middleman: A Hidden Literacy Crisis, Who Gets to Explain Democracy?

What if you can vote but can’t understand what you’re voting on? Imagine two citizens receiving identical governmental notices before preparing to cast their votes in an upcoming election. Both have the same legal right to vote, contact their representatives, and...

How Many Resignations are Too Many Resignations?: The Political Environment of the UK Leading to Keir Starmer Relinquishing his Premiership

There has been a lot of commotion in the last years about the instability of liberal democracies, and particularly established democracies which have made a considerable amount of people question their validity and efficacy. A particularly interesting example of this...

When Legal Authority May Undermine Democracy: The Overseas Voting Forms Controversy

In late August, the Trump Administration used emergency requests to alter the federal voting form used by overseas U.S. citizens, limiting how certain voters can request ballots. The changes include the elimination of a checkbox for U.S. citizens born abroad who have...

Border Politics and the Expansion of Executive Power

Feb 13, 2026 | Boston University

Immigration has remained one of the most politically charged issues in the United States. Over the past year, debates over border enforcement, asylum restrictions, and...

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DOGE and the Mask of “Reform”: Stealth Authoritarianism in Action Once Again

Feb 13, 2026 | Boston University

In early 2025, President Donald Trump announced the creation of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), his specialized advisory initiative led by Elon Musk and...

Foreign Intervention in Building Democracies: Does It Set Them Up for Failure?

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

Time and time again, during times of conflict, we often see interventionist strategies employed by powerful democratic countries. These countries work under the guise of democratization, where they...

The 2022 French Presidential Election: A Call for Political Reform

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

2022 French Presidential Election Poster The results of the 2022 French presidential election have left many wondering where the future of French political life will lead. While incumbent Emmanual...

Democratic Erosion in Hungary

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

On April 3 of this year, Hungry re-elected their prime minister Viktor Orban for his fourth consecutive term. His political party, Fidesz won 54.18% of the national party list vote and 83% of single...

History Repeating Itself: Pakistan’s Election Crisis Is Nothing New for the Country

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

Pakistan has had a troubled history with its leadership, and despite the past few years of relative stability, it seems that trend is not about to change. Not even a few weeks prior, former cricket...

The War in Tigray

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

While the majority of western media continues its focus on the current Russian invasion of Ukraine, a plethora of armed conflicts continue to rage in the global south. One of the more violent of...

The 2022 French Presidential Election: Far-Right Ideals on the Rise

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

The 2022 French Presidential election was controversial for a variety of reasons, the largest being the fact that a far-right populist managed to reach the final stages. Marie Le Pen and her...

Banning Opposition and Democratic Backsliding in Turkey

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

Throughout recent years, Turkey has shown many characteristics of democratic backsliding under the leadership of President Erdogan and his party, the Justice and Development Party. One of the key...

Why Are We So Obsessed with Democracy?

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

Being a student of political science, I have managed to consume a lot of knowledge and information about the United States democracy and its principles. Throughout my studies, I have always come to...

White Anxiety Helped Trump to Enter the White House

Apr 27, 2022 | University of Georgia

Census projects that the US will become predominantly non-white around the year of 2045. What some people consider as a story of success, might be seen as a substantial sociocultural threat from...