The current crisis around the Scottish National Party leadership centres on the party's position as a vanguard for Scottish independence, writes Ruairidh Brown. It could subsequently mark a watershed moment in the independence movement
The French President has pushed through his signature reform of the French pensions system against widespread opposition. Yet, argues Giovanni Capoccia, the fight is not over, and the stakes are high – and not just for France
Accurate data are needed to track human rights performance worldwide. But the range of different data sources available can be confusing, especially to non-experts. Anne-Marie Brook and Kobe Amos explain what qualities set Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI) data apart
Peter Donkor argues that the democratisation of our social lives is contingent upon a democratic political sphere. Doubling down on 'spillover theory', he urges governments to lead bolder democratisation efforts to show how ever-more democratic procedures are, indeed, preferable to authoritarian regimes and authoritarianism at home, school, work and beyond
The EU could learn valuable lessons from German Chancellor Scholz’s recent official visit to South America, writes Carlos Cruz Infante. Scholz showed a diplomacy formula that could leverage the Union’s geopolitical influence in the region
Scholars and journalists tend to focus on the misogyny of right-wing autocrats. But Jennifer Piscopo argues that we shouldn't overlook the patriarchal attitudes of left-wing populists. They may not directly attack women and gender minorities, but they also roll back gender equality gains
Why do people committed to democracy explicitly support undemocratic behaviour by their politicians? Suthan Krishnarajan argues that it all comes down to perception. Sometimes, politicians establish policies that attract widespread support, but they do so in an undemocratic fashion. Citizens then 'rationalise democracy' to reassure themselves that politicians are indeed acting in their best interests
Mattia Zulianello and Petra Guasti explore and rebut three die-hard myths about populism. This, they argue, on the one hand guards against overestimating populism as a phenomenon. On the other, it warns that we must not underestimate the political strength of the so-called populist radical right
The threat of sanctions or coercive power is key to how governments make public good outcomes. To increase the legitimacy of coercive power and address illegitimate forms of power such as control and corruption, Anne Nygaard Jedzini argues that politicians need to share power with citizens through deliberation
Li-Chia Lo revisits Rongxin Li’s essay on the Confucian concept of Minben (people-core/root) to offer more context to the concept and to differentiate it from the Chinese concept of Minzhu (people-master). Lo argues that both concepts are different, and we should not elide them
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