While the 20th century has been characterised by the generalisation of democratisation processes, the 21st century seems to have started with the reverse trend. An authoritarian-populist nexus is threatening liberal democracy on a global scale, including in its American and European heartlands. Charismatic leaders – thriving on electoral majorities and popular referenda – methodically undermine the rule of law and constitutional safeguards in order to consolidate their own power basis. Coupling inflammatory rhetoric with modern communication technologies, they short-circuit traditional elites and refuse to abide by international norms. Agitating contemporary scourges such as insecurity, loss of identity, mass migration and corrupt elites, they put in place new laws and mechanisms to harness civil society and political opponents. In order to better understand the novelty, permanence and global reach of “illiberal democracy”, this second issue of Global Challenges proposes seven case studies (Russia, Hungary, Turkey, the Middle East, Uganda, Venezuela and the United States) complemented by a series of expert interviews, maps and infographics.
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Democracy at the Crossroads
Reading time: 5 min -
1
Russia: Haunting Western Democratic Imagination
Reading time: 5 min -
2
Orbán’s Lawfare against Liberal Democracy in Hungary
Reading time: 4 min -
3
Turkey: Erdoğan’s Authoritarian Turn
Reading time: 5 min -
4
Reinventing Authoritarianism in the Middle East
Reading time: 5 min -
5
Uganda: Managing Democracy through Institutionalised Uncertainty
Reading time: 5 min -
6
Post-Truth Populism in Venezuela
Reading time: 5 min -
7
The United States and the Trajectory of Democracy
Reading time: 5 min -
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Democracy on the Brink: Four Key Insights