Gülşen Doğan argues that Türkiye’s long crisis reveals a new way of governing that stretches liberal rules without fully abandoning them. Cities like Istanbul can keep democratic options alive even as national politics turns in a more authoritarian direction
Trump’s 2025 tariff shock marks a sharp turn toward a near-isolationist US trade policy. Yet given that US protectionism is expected to ease, Andreas Dür and Alessia Invernizzi argue that the international trading system is likely to weather the storm
In his introductory piece for this series, Luca Verzichelli asked whether we can re-establish a connection between political institutions and citizens. Dario Castiglione suggests we can. But first, we must rethink democratic representation as a process of mutual engagement; then re-imagine its political practices and institutions
Research on digital violence must account for its metapolitical dimension. Silvia Díaz Fernández reveals how proponents of the far-right metapolitical project are shaping public discourse to fit their anti-democratic interests. Digital violence against women, racialised people and queer communities is all part of their strategy
Alexandros Ntaflos argues that Trump and Mamdani’s unexpectedly cordial meeting reflects shared populist appeals to 'the people', and pragmatic calculations of institutional power. But as concrete policies emerge, left-right ideological divisions will reassert themselves. Future conflicts between the two will echo the broader Western shift toward radical politics
Zsófia Papp and Godfred Bonnah Nkansah show that during Covid-19, Hungarians judged the quality of democracy less by procedural norms and more by government performance. Their findings reveal when citizens in backsliding regimes accept violations of democratic standards – and when they refuse to compromise
Gulay Icoz explores how the rejuvenated Science of Democracy series – Science of Democracy 2.0 – challenges conventional democratic theory. Here, she explains how it opens new pathways for citizen-led innovation while raising critical questions about institutional grounding and feasibility
The global nuclear order is more crowded than ever, with new actors, rules, and arenas constantly emerging. Carmen Wunderlich and Martin Senn argue, however, that this is less chaos than a continuous process of ordering and disordering. They show how nuclear politics are made, unmade, and remade in everyday practice
The German government is selling its record wage increase as 'support for workers'. But the wage hike also reveals a shift in how the country thinks about migration and economic planning. The higher wage floor is part of a bigger strategy to manage labour shortages, attract skilled talent, and protect long-term competitiveness, writes Chimdi Chukwukere
Four years after it cut all ties with Afghanistan, the Indian government’s strategy towards the Taliban regime is undergoing a transformation. Sonia Sarkar argues that India’s deteriorating relationship with Pakistan appears to have prompted this, and suggests it damages India’s pluralist reputation
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