JoD Online

How Autocrats Use Sharp Power to Wage War on Democracy

Most of the world’s democracies remain extremely vulnerable to sharp-power threats. The following Journal of Democracy essays explore how authoritarians weaponize universities, technologies, media, entertainment, and culture to attempt to crack democracy’s foundations.

The Demise of Senegalese Democracy

President Macky Sall has called off his country’s presidential election just weeks ahead of the vote. His unconstitutional decree will not only keep him in power, but threatens to throw Senegal into violent chaos.

Election Results—January 2024

Reports on elections in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Serbia, Sint Maarten, and Taiwan.

The Son Also Rises

Many feared Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s election would spell the end of Philippine democracy. But the dictator’s son has surprised nearly everyone, playing the role of a reformer while moving fast to sideline his populist rivals.

What Mattered to You in 2023

The ten most-read online exclusives this year focused on the Russia-Ukraine war as well as events in China, Iran, Western Europe, and Latin America.

Our Favorite Books of 2023

New works on China, Russia, political philosophy, English history, and much more graced our shelves this year. Here are the JoD staff’s favorite books of the year.

Three Things We Need to Renew Democracy in the World

Yesterday, Journal of Democracy founding coeditor Larry Diamond delivered the twentieth annual Seymour Martin Lipset Lecture on Democracy in the World, named for one of the great scholars of the twentieth century. In his remarks, Diamond outlined the grave threats that global democracy faces—and the three things we need to survive this moment.