Many scholars and pundits have recently declared that democracy is in crisis. According to analyses that draw on data from the Varieties of Democracy Project, the average level of democracy across the world has not necessary declined,… Read more »
The world is a much freer and more prosperous place than it was 30 years ago when Kenneth Wollack came to the National Democratic Institute (NDI). The United States, through… Read more »
Condoleezza Rice remains optimistic about the future of democracy. The former U.S. national security advisor (2001–2005) and secretary of state (2005–2009) believes that pessimists today make the mistake of expecting… Read more »
The liberal democratic world order is facing an unprecedented set of strains and challenges, analysts suggest. As democracies appear ever more dysfunctional, divided, and irresolute, as authoritarian regimes exploit and… Read more »
Liberal democracies have less legitimacy than at any time since World War II, and most of their structural problems don’t appear fixable. Today’s strongest leaders show little interest in… Read more »
With democracy on the defensive, America is missing in action, argues Brookings analyst William Galston. The latest Freedom House survey of global freedom (see below) notes “the accelerating withdrawal of… Read more »
A new report from the independent watchdog organization Freedom House says that democratic principles such as election integrity and freedom of the press are weakening globally for the 12th consecutive… Read more »
Democracy has taken some hard hits. But before we cede bragging rights to autocrats, or persuade ourselves of the need for precipitate action to arrest a perilous strategic slide, we… Read more »
The optimism I sensed in Cambodia in 2015 was cautious at best, notes analyst Martha Bayles. But among young people, at least, it was contagious enough that, when rumors began… Read more »
The United States has called on Cambodia to reverse steps that “backtracked on democracy” before a general election next year, Reuters reports: “We are advising that these steps that… Read more »