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.

Democratic Erosion: India and the U.S.

Democratic Erosion in the United States and India Intro From 2024-2025, India’s democratic erosion is deeper because of opaque party finance, and because pressures on civil society have made political competition less fair and accountability harder to enforce....

Buying Power: Oligarchy and Clientelism in Georgia

Georgia’s democracy is in rapid decline post-2024 general elections.

TUNISIA’S AUTHORITARIAN TURN: How President Kais Saied Is Dismantling the Arab Spring’s Only Democracy

When Tunisia's citizens overthrew their dictator in 2011, the world hailed Tunisia's emergence from this uprising as the only country to become a true democracy. For several years, Tunisia served as solid evidence that democracy was a realistic outcome of the Arab...

The Divisive Force of Technological Polarization: Understanding the TikTok Ban

Apr 10, 2024 | Georgia State University

In the ever-evolving landscape of social media platforms, TikTok has captivated millions with its short-form videos and trend-setting content. However, beneath its...

Sall’s Stealth Authoritarian: Senegal’s Election Delay

Apr 10, 2024 | Ursinus College

Senegal has been a democracy since 1960 when it first gained independence. It is one of the only countries in Africa to have never suffered a coup since their independence....

Democracy or Oligarchy?

Dec 2, 2020 | Brown University

As the election results in favor of Joe Biden are becoming officially certified, and the courts are consistently denying credence to Trump’s frivolous claims of election fraud, many Americans...

Kaczyński Causes Decline of Polish Democracy

Dec 1, 2020 | University of Georgia

After the fall of the communist Soviet Union in 1991, Poland was left to be a free country. Poland was at peace with their neighbors and had the opportunity to build a country off of democratic...

Anti-Immigration Rhetoric and Its Threat to Dutch Democracy

Dec 1, 2020 | University of Georgia

Some threats to democratic health might not be as blatant as one might think. Rather they could accompany regular developments such as a country’s immigration status. In recent years the Netherlands...

U.S. Trust on Elections

Dec 1, 2020 | University of Georgia

In the last 20 years, the United States has seen an increasing rise in the lack of trust in election results. Public trust in elections began to erode with the Supreme Court's decision in Gore v....

Aid War: Can Great Power Rivalry Be A Breeding Ground for African Democracy?

Dec 1, 2020 | Brown University

After decades of Cold War-era proxy conflicts between the United States and Soviet Union that ravaged nations across the developing world, an unofficial consensus emerged: Great power rivalries are...

Young Thai Protesters Risk it All for Democracy

Dec 1, 2020 | University of Georgia

Despite the eroding track record of so-called democracies across the globe, many nations are experiencing increased support for pro-democracy movements. Such is the case in Thailand, where a...

Corruption in Mexico Under AMLO

Nov 30, 2020 | University of Georgia

No one likes corruption. If there was one topic every voter, no matter the political ideology, could agree upon it would be their disdain for corruption. So, why is it still around in countries like...

“We Do Not Agree with Offering Congratulations in Advance”: Similarities Between the 2020 American and 2006 Mexican Presidential Elections

Nov 30, 2020 | University of Georgia

A Reluctant Recognition Standing alongside the likes of Vladimir Putin, Jair Bolsonaro, and Kim Jong-Un, Mexican President Andres...

The Power of Perception: Trump’s Lawsuits May Not Have a Legal Basis, but Still Harm Democracy

Nov 30, 2020 | University of Georgia

Election lawsuits are nothing new in the United States, but President Donald Trump’s legal action and refusal to concede are bordering on unprecedented territory. While the legal remedies he seeks,...