Scott R. Stroud
Bhimrao Ambedkar was many things, and is often known as a political activist and an anti-caste thinker. In addition, Scott R. Stroud positions Ambedkar as a theorist of democracy who extends the pragmatist tradition Read more
Anastasia Kavada
Anastasia Kavada's 'project democracy' grew out of the major protest movements of the 2010s. It centres around action, organisation and implementation, rather than deliberation or decision-making. Here, she argues that the project offers an understanding of democracy that goes beyond the familiar practices discussed in academic literature Read more
Andrea Pető
Andrea Pető is a gender scholar formerly based at Central European University in Budapest. Following crackdowns on gender studies by Viktor Orbán's government in Hungary, her institution has been forced into exile in Vienna. Here, Andrea breaks down illiberal leaders' specific strategies to undermine academic freedom, and offers suggestions for how academics, and citizens, can resist illiberal attacks on higher education Read more
Muhammad Edita
Since 2015, technology has helped consolidate Nigerian democracy by ensuring transparency and fairness in elections. Yet, writes Muhammad Edita, in Nigeria's most recent elections, the malfunctioning or manipulation of technology has – paradoxically – led to defeated parties challenging electoral results Read more
James Tully
James Tully, Keith Cherry, David Owen and Pablo Ouziel explain how different conceptions of democracy can be grouped into 'families of democracies'. Thrillingly, they show how different families can 'join hands' and work together to establish an ecosocial succession that benefits everyone Read more
Joanie Willett
Local elections have just taken place in the UK. Yet despite decades of devolution deals, and various iterations of 'Levelling Up', UK local government remains economically unequal and centralised. The US, by contrast is highly decentralised. Joanie Willett says we can learn from the US about the importance of capacity building, a vibrant civil society, and encouraging people to feel invested in their towns’ future Read more
Scott Williamson
When citizens develop grievances, autocrats try to deflect blame to retain popular support. Scott Williamson argues that regime type influences strategies and success rates of autocrats shifting blame when confronted by popular discontent. The more personalist an autocracy, the more damaging blame attribution can be for autocratic survival in office Read more
John Wall
One of the most marginalised groups in contemporary democracies is the third of the world’s population who are children under 18 years of age. John Wall argues that responding to democratic decline in our time must include giving all children the right to vote Read more
