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.

Replacing Ballots with Bullets: How Shadow Operations are Crippling Democracy in Africa

Russia’s Wagner Group, a private military contractor organization operated in part by the Russian government, has engaged with several African nations’ sovereignty and geopolitics for some time now, from crippling opposition to extracting resources at large.

President Trump’s Deployment of the National Guard: Frequently Asked Questions

In June 2025, President Donald Trump ordered the deployment of National Guard troops to Los Angeles. In August, he sent National Guard troops to Washington, DC. The process has since repeated itself in Memphis, Chicago, and Portland. The administration claims this is...

Environmental Fragility & Political Instability: Climate Change as a Driver of Democratic Backsliding

Environmental Fragility & Political Instability—is climate change helping cause democratic erosion?

Retrogressive Reform: Poland’s Judicial Creep Backwards

Oct 14, 2022 | Ohio State University

Since the fall of communism in Poland in 1989, no single party has won an outright majority of seats in parliamentary elections - until the PiS (Law and Justice) Party...

Purging Democracy: Voter Roll Purges and the Undermining of US Democracy

Oct 14, 2022 | Boston University

From 2014 to 2016, 16 million voters were removed from voter registration lists. Voter roll purges keep voting rolls accurate by canceling the registration of people who...

Ego Ergo Uh-Oh: Trump’s Preoccupation With Victory As A Marker of Democratic Backsliding by Hannah Hoey @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

The presidential election of November 2016 is not an event easily forgotten, and in fact remains a searingly fresh memory in many a mind; for some, however, it cannot be fresh enough. This week,...

Big Money Politics with the NRA: Are our children or our politician’s bank accounts more important? by Jane Huber @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

In the future, when I have kids, I want to drop them off at school and not worry about whether they will come home again. That is what parents are worrying about today. At elementary schools, middle...

Jennings v. Rodriguez signals frightening loss of rights by Wallace Anne Cloud @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

This past week was an incredible important one for the Supreme Court, particularly in the area of immigration, and concluded in a frightening loss of rights for legal immigrants. After several...

Consequences of Trump’s Populism: The Battleground of West Virginia by Dylan Quinn @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

Now entering its seventh day, West Virginian teachers and school service personnel continue to be on strike in every county in their state. Fighting for higher pay, more benefits, and pro-union...

DACA Repeal and Trump’s Populist Appeal by Anne Pfeifenberger @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

Discussion on immigration over the past year has been largely dominated by two topics: DACA and the wall. On the campaign trail, Donald Trump took the hard line on immigration and enforced his...

Why the “Common Good” of the Gun Control Debate Highlights America’s Democratic Flaw by Jake Hempel @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

Gun control has been on the hot seat of political discussion in the United States over the past decade, and with good reason. With recent events in Parkland, Florida, to the Sandy Hook tragedy in...

Is He for Gun Control or for Gun Rights? Losing Faith in Changing Opinions by Isabelle Bertolozzi @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

438. Since January of 2014, 438 people have been shot in a school shooting. 138 of those people died. That number does not even include the 20 first graders and six adults that were killed at Sandy...

Can Gun Control Return the Power to the People? by Wyeth Taylor @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

Today it is undeniable one of the most divisive issues in American politics is centered around gun control. It is a deeply partisan issue, with the core value of the Second Amendment struggling...

Populist or Not, Trump’s Stance on Immigration Gives People the Chance to Stand Up for Democracy by Jillian Seigel @ Skidmore College

Mar 2, 2018 | Skidmore College

The United States was founded through immigration and has continued to be a destination for many people. The issue of immigration has been a partisan issue for decades because of what political...