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.

Election Denialism Might be The New Normal in The United States

Although Trump can’t run for another term, the false narrative of election fraud could help to create pushback from his party in the event that Democrats win the next election.

Stealth Authoritarianism in Tunisia

According to Al Jazeera, Tunisia’s January 2026 sentencing of two journalists to three year prison terms for allegedly “spreading false news" illustrates the broader pattern of democratic erosion under president Kais Saied. Once widely regarded as the only democratic...

AI as Democratic Erosion by Proxy: Trump, Synthetic Media, and the Normalization of Anti-Pluralism

Donald Trump’s use of AI-generated media, particularly content that fabricates or manipulates the speech and actions of political opponents, constitutes a form of democratic erosion by proxy: it does not directly dismantle democratic institutions, but it degrades the...

The Deeper Implications of Trump’s Political Labeling

Feb 13, 2026 | Boston University

Most people who have been keeping up with American politics over the past few years are familiar with Donald Trump’s creative language for his opposition. He titled Joe...

Takaichi’s Era: Democracy on the Edge?

Feb 13, 2026 | Boston University

Japan has long been regarded as a consolidated parliamentary democracy since the post–World War II constitutional reforms, a status reaffirmed by its classification as a...

Georgia’s Foreign Agents Law and Quiet Death of Democratic Accountability

Jan 8, 2026 | University of Pittsburgh

In May of 2024, thousands of Georgians filled the streets of the capital city, Tbilisi, chanting for the country to abandon “Kremlin-style” law, as police fired water cannons and arrested protestors...

The Boiling Point of Election Violence: Democratic Erosion in Tanzania

Jan 1, 2026 | University of Pittsburgh

Once hailed for its relative stability in an otherwise politically volatile East Africa, Tanzania has exploded into violence and political protest following the controversial reelection of President...

Amnesty for Atrocities: Peru’s Democratic Backsliding in the Shadow of Fujimori

Dec 18, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

On August 13 2025, recently impeached Peruvian President Dina Boluarte signed bill No. 366 of 2023 into law, which provided amnesty to those who committed crimes against humanity during the...

What the Madhesi Movement Reveals About Nepal’s Democratic Erosion

Dec 17, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

Nepal’s Madhesi community lives in the Tarai plains along the southern border, a region culturally intertwined with northern India. Madhesis speak Maithili, Bhojpuri, Awadhi, and Hindi, maintain...

Namibia’s Troubling Drift Toward Democratic Erosion

Dec 16, 2025 | Georgia State University Perimeter College

Namibia’s 2024 general election marks a significant moment of democratic backsliding, not through overt electoral manipulation, but through systemic administrative failures and executive efforts to...

Will Protests in Morocco Lead to Meaningful Change?

Dec 16, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

Moroccan youth have taken to the streets in protests demanding lower healthcare costs, the right to protest, and other reforms including decreased sports expenditures. The protests have been met...

Dina Boluarte and Democratic Backsliding in Peru

Dec 16, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

Figure 1 Ui-martin September, 2025 With the murder of over 50 protestors in three years, Peruvian President Dina Boluarte has demonstrated her willingness to suppress opposition. Her actions in Peru...

Democratic Erosion: India and the U.S.

Dec 15, 2025 | Georgia State University Perimeter College

Democratic Erosion in the United States and India Intro From 2024-2025, India’s democratic erosion is deeper because of opaque party finance, and because pressures on civil society have made...

Buying Power: Oligarchy and Clientelism in Georgia

Dec 15, 2025 | University of Pittsburgh

In 2003, Georgia had a democratic breakthrough. The Rose Revolution ousted the remnants of the state socialist regime and transitioned Georgia into a burgeoning democracy. At the time, the country...