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.

The Judicial Branch’s Downfall

By ruling with bias, the Judicial Branch is overstepping its constitutional role and threatening the integrity of our separation of powers and system of checks and balances.

Israel’s Judicial Reforms: A Potential Danger to Democracy?

Israel’s suggested judicial reforms pose a risk to democratic checks and balances by undermining the independence of the judiciary, centralizing executive authority, and potentially weakening democratic principles, similar to what has been observed in countries like Poland.

Arresting Opposition and Squashing Protests: Democratic Backsliding in Turkey Under Erdoğan

Turkey has been inching towards autocracy under Erdoğan and the AKP for the last 22 years.

Conflict in Romania’s Double-Executive Government Shows Potential Signs of Democratic Backsliding

Nov 27, 2022 | Boston University

Prior to the EU summit in June 2012, the Romanian prime minister, Victor Ponta, disregarded a ruling by the Romanian Constitutional Court, which declared the president had...

Right Wing Populism in Spain: How the VOX Party Serves as an International Threat to Climate Change

Nov 27, 2022 | Boston University

VOX, a right-wing populism party in Spain, is renowned for its denial of global warming. Experts believe this is the reason for its political success as the party was...

Democratic Backsliding via an Eroding Middle Class by Kenneth Coleman

May 5, 2019 | University of Chicago

In Economic Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy, Acemoglu and Robinson present the role of the middle class in the formation and continuity of democracy. Since democracy forms as a "response to a...

The Threat to Voting Rights in Florida by Meghan Ward

May 5, 2019 | University of Chicago

Last November, Florida restored voting rights to 1.4 million of its citizens when it passed Florida Amendment 4, which ended disenfranchisement of felons who had served their time. In a state that...

Bolsonaro’s Brazil: What The Election of Jair Bolsonaro Means for The Future of Democracy by Catherine Browder

May 5, 2019 | Georgia State University

In a world that is constantly evolving, people around the world are turning to leaders who quell their fear of instability and change. Since the creation of government, democratic or otherwise,...

The Spin Zone by Max Krause

May 5, 2019 | University of Chicago

Information accessibility has only expanded in the era of the internet, mass media television, and big data firms. Yet surprisingly, the relationship between reality and the masses's interpretation...

Polarization in Poland by Anjali Nahata

May 5, 2019 | University of Chicago

History can be circular in parts of Europe. The divide that has severed Polish politics is very similar to the divide that split France during the Dreyfus affair. The rhetoric employed by the...

The Erosion of Democracy in Venezuela by Brieana Burke

May 5, 2019 | Georgia State University

Democracy was a damaged project in Latin America before the current crisis in Venezuela. Military coups d’état and other violent seizures of power in the 1960s and 1970s were followed by weak...

Sudan: Dictator Overthrown, Democracy is far from Near. By Cynthia Mejia

May 5, 2019 | Sacramento State University

In December 2018 the Sudanese government imposed emergency austerity measures and a sharp currency devaluation. This was their way of trying to avoid an economic collapse, which was influenced by...

Rodrigo Duterte: A “Law and Order” President, with Criminal Intentions by Sara Rosendorf

May 4, 2019 | Georgia State University

“The Punisher,” “Dirty Harry,” “Trump of the Philippines.” These are just a few of the nicknames given to controversial Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte, and for good reason. You might think that...

The Insidiousness of the Extreme Right in Austria by Alec Wood

May 4, 2019 | American University

It’s not every day that Austrian and American politics intersect. Monday morning, April 30, 2019, reporting from Vice News revealed that the Kootenai County Republican Committee unanimously passed a...