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 are student blog posts written by student participants in the Democratic Erosion Course. These posts were not written by nor represent the views of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

Trump’s Press Ban and The Courts Response

Access to unbarred media is fundamental to maintaining the integrity of a democratic country. Without independent media, the stream of information to voters is disrupted making people's understanding of their political environment inaccurate. If the media...

Trump’s Use of the SAVE Database May Threaten Democratic Participation

On Friday, September 25th, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to make use of the Department of Homeland Security's Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database to screen state voter lists for possible noncitizens temporarily. The...

The Press and the Limits of Presidential Power

On September 25, 2026, The Atlantic published Quinta Jurecic’s article, “The Two-Year Temper Tantrum to Come,” about President Donald Trump’s recent fight with the White House press. Just one day earlier, a federal judge had ordered the White House to restore access...

Can the Threat of Federal Agents at Polling Places Undermine Democratic Participation?

Oct 2, 2026 | Boston University

What is Happening? In the upcoming midterm elections taking place November 3, 2026, the Trump administration has faced growing questions regarding whether federal law...

Political Parties Increasing Dislike of Each Other in Contemporary America

Oct 2, 2026 | Boston University

In May, a survey put out by Pew Research Center found that 58% of Democrats and 59% of Republicans viewed the opposing party in a negative and unfavorable light....

The 2026 Midterms as an Institutional Test

May 2, 2026 | Boston University

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

May 1, 2026 | Suffolk University

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...

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

May 1, 2026 | Tulane University

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...

When Saving Democracy Looks Like Killing It: Romania’s Election Crisis and the Paradox of Militant Democracy

May 1, 2026 | Suffolk University

In December 2024, Romania's Constitutional Court did something almost without precedent in modern European history: it annulled the first round of a presidential election 48 hours before the second...

How the Supreme Court’s Immunity Ruling Impacts American Democracy

Apr 30, 2026 | Suffolk University

In July 2024, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a landmark decision granting presidents broad immunity from prosecution for actions taken while in office. In Trump v. United States...

El Salvador: Trading Checks and Balances for Saftey

Apr 30, 2026 | Suffolk University

Resistances to Democratic Backsliding in Indonesia

Apr 30, 2026 | James Madison University

Indonesia has experienced continuous democratic backsliding since 2017. Despite pervasive executive aggrandizement and other continuing challenges, domestic actors have worked from above and below...

Recent President Sets Back El Salvador

Apr 30, 2026 | Boston University

El Salvador is facing democratic erosion due to its current president Nayib Bukele. Bukele at first started his presidency in 2019, winning against the two candidates of the main two historically...

America stuck in a Dilemma

Apr 30, 2026 | Boston University

The United States is at risk of losing its democracy due to its president, Donald Trump. Many are concerned with the fact that Trump is showing signs of wanting to get rid of democracy. A lot of the...