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.

South Africa’s Democracy Isn’t Collapsing, It’s Quietly Eroding

South Africa’s democracy remains intact on paper, but corruption, governance failures, and declining public trust reveal how democratic erosion can quietly unfold when both political elites weaken institutions and citizens lose faith in democracy’s ability to deliver real change.

Identity Survival Amongst Democratically Eroded Ethno-Religious Conflicts

When politics between religious governments turn into a contest for identity survival, democracy institutions stop being referees and start becoming weapons.

Poland’s Democratic Decline Was Reversible

In 2015, Poland experienced a significant decrease in democracy. The Law and Justice Party (PiS), under Jaroslaw Kaczyński’s leadership, secured victories in both the presidential and parliamentary elections. In a matter of months, the government acted to diminish the...

Why Peaceful Protesting Won’t Save American Democracy Anytime Soon

Apr 18, 2026 | Boston University

On March 28, 2026, hundreds of thousands of Americans took to the streets under the “No Kings” banner in protest of the current Trump Administration. The crowds were...

When Openness Meets Reality: Immigration and Change in Sweden

Apr 18, 2026 | George Mason University

Sweden has long been seen as one of the most open and humanitarian countries in Europe. For many years, it accepted many refugees and immigrants, especially during the...

Blog Post 1

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

One reading I’d like to touch on is Chapter One of Levitsky and Ziblatt’s book, “How Democracies Die”. At first, I didn’t understand why the Aesop passage was included in the chapter: then I...

Georgia’s October 2024 Protests: Exposing the Dangers of Power Consolidation and Pro-Putin Corruption

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

In October 2024, mass protests erupted across the nation of Georgia following the release of highly contested election results that extended the power of the ruling Georgian Dream party....

First Amendment, First to Go: Trump’s Threats on a Free Press

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

President Trump has spent the first weeks of his administration enacting firm executive orders and appointing allies to key government positions. His swift actions have not gone unnoticed, given...

How to Blur the Lines: Euphemism and Erosion

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

Euphemism as defined by Merriam Webster “the substitution of an agreeable or inoffensive expression for one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant” is one of is not the most important too...

South Korean Martial Law in 2024: How Was Democracy Threatened?

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

On December 3, 2024, South Korean President Yoon Seok Yeol declared martial law, causing widespread panic throughout the nation. His declaration was made in order to protect the country from...

Threats to Democracy: Trump’s Appointment of Devin Nunes to Lead Intelligence Advisory Board

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

Although there have been numerous more significant, overarching levels of democratic erosion displayed by the Trump administration, examining the seemingly minor actions contributing to this...

Strange Bedfellows? Republican Endorsements of Kamala Harris and the Choices of Democratic Gatekeepers

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

In the United States’ hyper-polarized political environment, endorsements that cross party lines are relatively rare. Yet in 2024, several high-profile Republicans urged their own party members to...

Our First Line of Defense Against an American Authoritarian Regime is Crumbling: Education

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

In an effort to explain what some often feel is the unexplainable, political scientists have been devising metrics to analyze those voters who cast their ballots for authoritarian candidates, to...

Dissolution of Democratic Norms in Trump’s America

Feb 13, 2025 | Boston University

In January, Congressman Andy Ogles, a Republican Representative for Tennessee, introduced a resolution to revise the 22nd Amendment, allowing President Trump and any future president to serve a new...