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.

The 2026 Midterms as an Institutional Test

Orbán Lost. But Did Democracy Win? Hungary’s Election and the Limits of Electoral Recovery

On April 12 2026 Viktor Orbán's sixteen-year grip on Hungary ended. This is when Péter Magyar's Tisza party won a landslide securing a two-thirds supermajority in parliament. The same threshold Orbán had used for years to rewrite the constitution in Fidesz's favor....

Democratic Erosion and the Far-Right in Post-Estallido Chile

A fundamental question haunts any serious analysis of Chile's recent political trajectory: did the democratic erosion now visibly accelerating under the far-right begin with the mass mobilizations of 2019, or did it come after? The answer requires resisting the...

When Guardrails Break: Turkey’s Terrifying Warning to the Democratic World

https://www.nccadvocacy.org/post/freedom-house-freedom-in-the-world-2025#:~:text=Freedom%20on%20the%20Net%202025,with%20sharpest%20decline%20in%20freedoms

Apr 19, 2026 | George Mason University, Universities

Democracy collapses not because of army tanks, but because of the division fostered by leadership and legitimate voting. Just over a decade ago, Turkey was praised as a...

Is This The New Normal?

Apr 19, 2026 | Suffolk University

The President of The United States threatened genocide in the Middle East over a social media post. This is not an exaggeration nor a bizarre example of being hacked. The...

Has Kuwait Abandoned What’s Left of Its Democracy?

May 13, 2025 | James Madison University

Kuwait's Emir has recently dissolved the country's parliament citing corruption and the parliament's poor performance as his reasoning. While this is not unprecedented in Kuwaiti politics, the...

Civil Society and the Fight for Democracy in Slovakia

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-43437993

May 13, 2025 | James Madison University

When journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée were murdered in 2018, outraged citizens across the state demanded that Prime Minister Robert Fico resign. But today, as populist leader Fico, head and...

Somalia: Demise of the Clan System?

May 13, 2025 | James Madison University

You Can’t Sit with Us: The Practice of Democratic Gatekeeping and How It Has Saved Democracies

May 9, 2025 | Tulane University

At the 11th hour of the 2024 election many Republican politicians and members of congress took a stance against Republican candidate, Donald Trump. Through the “Republicans for Harris” tagline, they...

The Erosion of an Already Weak Democracy: The Rise and Fall of Jovenel Moïse

May 8, 2025 | Tulane University

Jovenel Moïse's presidency marked a dangerous shift from Haiti's already shaky democracy to overt authoritarianism. Delayed elections, unchecked abuse of executive power, and violent suppression of...

Undermining the Feedback Loop: How Trump’s Educational Policies Hinder Democratic Accountability

May 7, 2025 | Tulane University

In a larger trend of censoring opinions which the Trump administration views as undesirable, the Trump administration’s actions towards schools and universities has a negative impact on democracy as...

Democracy Six Feet Under: How Disinformation is Burying Philippine Democracy Alive

May 7, 2025 | Featured, University of the Philippines, Diliman

Philippine democracy is in great danger once again now that the two families who benefited the most from disinformation – the Marcoses and Dutertes, are in power and have turned against one another....

MAGA Meritocracy and Populist Ironies: Eroding Democracy from Within?

May 6, 2025 | Tulane University

The MAGA movement’s embrace of “meritocracy,” often wielded against Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, reveals a profound and damaging contradiction at the heart of its populist...

Redefining the West: How JD Vance’s Speech in Munich became a Turning Point in Transatlantic Politics

May 6, 2025 | Tartu University

On February 14, 2025, JD Vance, the Vice President of the United States, addressed the Munich Security Conference. This conference is one of the world’s most important forums on international...