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.

Pernicious Polarization and the Failure of Resistance in El Salvador

The current state of democracy in El Salvador emphasizes how pernicious polarization destroys the possibility of effective resistance to democratic backsliding, as theorized by McCoy, Rahman, and Somer in "Polarization and the Global Crisis of Democracy." Bukele's...

How Democracy Erodes: A Comparison between the U.S. and Brazil

Both the United States under President Trump and Brazil under Jair Bolsonaro experienced a period of anti-democratic rhetoric. That led to the decline of significant indicators of stable democratic regimes. Among these indicators are election intimidation, attacks on...

Why The Save Act Misses The Mark

The current administration's push for the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act has become yet another polarizing topic between the left and the right. The SAVE America Act mandates voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship at the time of...

Tempering Potential Post-Election Expectations in Hungary

Apr 12, 2026 | Boston University

Hungary’s 21st century shift from liberal democracy into a “hybrid regime” – or a competitive authoritarianist state, as the phenomenon is also sometimes known – has been...

Due Process Violation and Democratic Erosion in El Salvador

Apr 6, 2026 | University of Houston

In March 2022, El Salvador declared a state of emergency that would reshape not only the country's political landscape but also their legal foundation. Under the current...

The 2025 Belarus Presidential Election: Another Rigged Vote Under Lukashenko

Feb 12, 2025 | Boston University

On January 26, 2025, Belarus once again went through the steps of a presidential election, but the outcome was never in doubt. According to The Guardian, Alexander Lukashenko collected 87.6% of the...

Pushing out the Opposition: How President Trump is Unraveling the Democratic System from Within

Feb 11, 2025 | Boston University

On Monday, January 25th, President Trump was sworn into office for the second time, and he has been very busy since then. His controversial candidacy and, ultimately, his presidency in 2016 pivoted...

Democratic Erosion in India: How Narendra Modi Makes Use of Offensive Populism

Feb 5, 2025 | Sabanci University

Recently party politics agenda has been occupied by the debates of rising right-wing extremism, challenging and changing the status quo in many countries. The discussion around extremism(s) attaches...

2024 Jordanian Parliamentary Elections: Rise of Loyalist Parties Under New Political Party Law

Feb 3, 2025 | Sabanci University

Jordanian parliamentary elections were held on 10 September 2024 following King Abdullah II’s decision to dissolve the parliament on 25 July 2024. After a long durée, these elections became a...

The Creche Controversy in Turkey

Feb 3, 2025 | Sabanci University

Turkey has been governed under a competitive authoritarian regime for almost a decade. The incumbent Justice and Development Party (AKP) has held power for the last 22 years, with the past decade...

Between Tutelary Democracy and Populism: 2022-2023 Pakistani Political Crisis and 2024 General Election

Feb 1, 2025 | Sabanci University

The portrait of Imran Khan, carried by the supporters of the PTI. [Shahzaib Akber/EPA] Background Pakistan, along with Turkey (until the 2010s) and Thailand, is often viewed as one of the textbook...

Donald Trump, An American Demagogue

Jan 28, 2025 | Northeastern University

Throughout our nation's history, only one president could claim the unique honor of having been elected to the presidency twice in nonconsecutive terms. Grover Cleavland, when in 1893 he made due on...

Fighting Fake News: Lessons from the World’s Top Target

Dec 15, 2024 | Brown University

2018 was a year of awakening in Taiwan. Two high-profile events threw the consequences of fake news into relief. First, Su Chii-cherng, the envoy to Osaka for the Taipei Economic and Cultural...

Fighting Fake News: Lessons from the World’s Top Target

Dec 15, 2024 | Brown University

2018 was a year of awakening in Taiwan. Two high-profile events threw the consequences of fake news into relief. First, Su Chii-cherng, the envoy to Osaka for the Taipei Economic and Cultural...