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.

Colorado Election Mistake Fuels Election Lies and Emboldens Populist Ideology

Oct 17, 2022 | Boston University

Colorado's secretary of state sent 30,000 non-citizens postcards that encouraged them to register to vote. Shortly after, the secretary of state's office released a...

How the Issue of Crime Has Reshaped the 2022 Midterm Elections

Oct 17, 2022 | Boston University

How the Issue of Crime has Reshaped the 2022 Midterm Elections As the Midterm Elections rapidly approach, a number of policy issues have taken the forefront of...

Day at the Georgia Capitol by Zyion Butts

Apr 27, 2019 | Georgia State University

Remember the song about Bills? From Schoolhouse rock? That’s exactly what I was thinking while walking through the Georgia Capitol on Crossover day. Since taking my Global Issues course this Spring...

Can America’s Bipartisan Framework Guard Against Populism? By Noa Levin

Apr 27, 2019 | University of Chicago

Despite a few close calls, the United States has never truly succumbed to populism. Now, the election of Donald Trump has challenged the American democratic framework’s resilience to populism. Many...

Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump: Not One and the Same

Apr 26, 2019 | University of Chicago

In many ways, the 2016 U.S. presidential election cycle was a rollercoaster of the unexpected, rocking the American public. With the 2020 elections looming in the not-so-distant future,...

Erdogan’s Usage of Explicit and Subtle Authoritarian Control by Charlotte Bairey

Apr 26, 2019 | University of Chicago

The recent upholding of a Turkish court’s decision to convict dissenting journalists demonstrates that, in the case of Turkey, the use of explicitly anti-democratic politics is woven in with a...

President Magufuli Could Wipe Out an Already Flawed Democracy in Tanzania by Kalif Robinson

Apr 26, 2019 | Georgetown University

Tanzania’s flawed democracy is turning into a brutal dictatorship. In 2015, President of Tanzania John Magufuli rode into power on a populist wave fueled by people’s dissatisfaction with corruption....

How students feel about Trump?

Apr 26, 2019 | Georgia State University

On Thursday February 28th, I attended a meeting by a Georgia State organization called Realize. The organization is a comfort zone for students to be able to voice their opinions without being...

Polluting the Polity: Is an Informed Citizenry Essential to Democracy? by Kenneth Coleman

Apr 26, 2019 | University of Chicago

Muller posits that, in order to hold an accountable government, "it is crucial that citizens be well informed about politics" [1]. There is a common sense truth to this statement. A democracy is,...

America, Disenfranchised: How the Electoral College Has Failed the United States

Apr 26, 2019 | Sacramento State University

By Aaron Walters There is no doubt that recent phenomenon in the United States have fostered a greater degree of institutional reflection in which the general public is now blatantly aware that the...

Egypt: Why Democracy is More Than the Right to Vote by Justin Saint-Loubert-Bie

Apr 25, 2019 | University of Chicago

The Egyptian people ratified constitutional amendments significantly expanding President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s power in an April referendum. The vote, which closed on April 22, left el-Sisi with...