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.

A Nobel Laureate Suspended, A Journalist Jailed: Tunisia’s Slide into Competitive Authoritarianism

On April 24, 2026, Tunisian President Kais Saied’s government suspended the Tunisian League for Human Rights (LTDH). This organization shared the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize for its role in saving the country’s democratic transition. The same day, authorities detained Zied...

On the ousting of Orbán

On the lessons learned from Orbán’s ouster.

Democracy in Exchange for Security; What is Left When the Concert Ends?

Shakira’s sold-out El Salvador residency exemplifies how Bukele uses high-profile events to showcase his dramatic security transformation while obscuring the democratic erosion, economic decline, and human rights abuses that made it possible.

Democratic Erosion in Serbia and the Role of China’s Belt and Road Initiative

Apr 20, 2026 | George Mason University

The Novi Sad Canopy Collapse and Vučić’s response Can authoritarianism be spread transnationally, and if so, how does it affect democratic regimes in an era of...

The Stealthy Decay: Türkiye’s Democratic Erosion

Apr 19, 2026 | George Mason University

For much of the early twenty-first century, Türkiye was often considered a successful example of democratic consolidation in a Muslim-majority country. Political scientists...

Legal but Corrosive: Trump’s Plan to Withdraw the U.S. From Several International Organizations

Feb 12, 2026 | Boston University

At the start of this calendar year, rumors started circulating in the White House that President Trump aims to withdraw the U.S. from 66 International Organizations. Many of these organizations...

The Illusion of Elections: How Authoritarian Power Undermines Democratic Legitimacy in Myanmar

Jan 10, 2026 | University of the Philippines, Diliman

Democracy is often framed as a straightforward process in which citizens elect their leaders and political authority reflects popular will. Yet the presence of elections alone does not guarantee...

Georgia’s Foreign Agents Law and Quiet Death of Democratic Accountability

Jan 8, 2026 | University of Pittsburgh

In May of 2024, thousands of Georgians filled the streets of the capital city, Tbilisi, chanting for the country to abandon “Kremlin-style” law, as police fired water cannons and arrested protestors...

The Boiling Point of Election Violence: Democratic Erosion in Tanzania

Jan 1, 2026 | University of Pittsburgh

Once hailed for its relative stability in an otherwise politically volatile East Africa, Tanzania has exploded into violence and political protest following the controversial reelection of President...

Amnesty for Atrocities: Peru’s Democratic Backsliding in the Shadow of Fujimori

Dec 18, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

On August 13 2025, recently impeached Peruvian President Dina Boluarte signed bill No. 366 of 2023 into law, which provided amnesty to those who committed crimes against humanity during the...

What the Madhesi Movement Reveals About Nepal’s Democratic Erosion

Dec 17, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

Nepal’s Madhesi community lives in the Tarai plains along the southern border, a region culturally intertwined with northern India. Madhesis speak Maithili, Bhojpuri, Awadhi, and Hindi, maintain...

Namibia’s Troubling Drift Toward Democratic Erosion

Dec 16, 2025 | Georgia State University Perimeter College

Namibia’s 2024 general election marks a significant moment of democratic backsliding, not through overt electoral manipulation, but through systemic administrative failures and executive efforts to...

Will Protests in Morocco Lead to Meaningful Change?

Dec 16, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

Moroccan youth have taken to the streets in protests demanding lower healthcare costs, the right to protest, and other reforms including decreased sports expenditures. The protests have been met...

Dina Boluarte and Democratic Backsliding in Peru

Dec 16, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

Figure 1 Ui-martin September, 2025 With the murder of over 50 protestors in three years, Peruvian President Dina Boluarte has demonstrated her willingness to suppress opposition. Her actions in Peru...