Sort Articles

totalitarianism

August 24, 2026

Exploiting international law for political persecution

Aleh Baradzin How could European legal mechanisms possibly serve the interests of an authoritarian leader? Aleh Baradzin examines how the brutal regime of Alexander Lukashenko in Belarus exploits international law to involve European courts, police, and migration authorities in the transnational persecution of political opponents Read more
August 10, 2026

Dicing the onion: dissecting top-down assumptions about Chinese discourse control

Ruairidh Brown As concerns grow over the global reach of Chinese Communist Party censorship, Ruairidh Brown and Momo clarify how Chinese discourse control functions. Rather than a top-down, process, they argue, censorship is a multidirectional social phenomenon Read more
June 26, 2026

Integration, identity and imperial legacies in the post-2022 Russian diaspora

Amir Alecperov Amir Alecperov argues that Russian emigration after 2022 has not produced a break with imperial thinking ­– it has exported it. From Central Asia to the Baltic states and Germany, a troubling pattern emerges: Russians abroad carry the same mentality that enabled the war. Host states have the right, and the tools, to respond Read more
May 14, 2026

Libertarian-conservative displacement of liberal democracy 

Regina Queiroz The collapse of liberal democracy is often misunderstood. Regina Queiroz argues that a libertarian-conservative model has displaced liberal democracy's endorsement of popular sovereignty. Driven by re-regulation, liberalisation, and privatisation, this model prioritises market logic over social cohesion. From Portugal’s housing crisis to national populism, the author explores this ideological shift Read more
March 4, 2022

🌊 Autocratisation: the key to capturing today's democratic difficulties

João Alípio Correa The concept of 'illiberal democracy' is well-founded, but João Alípio Correa argues that it fails to convey what is happening in regimes described as such. To gain a more incisive understanding of the current deterioration in democratic regimes, he proposes the umbrella definition 'autocratisation' Read more
August 27, 2021

🌊 Harnessing illiberalism’s analytical leverage

Julian G. Waller Some contemporary political developments take inspiration from fascism. But analogies between modern anti-liberal reaction and earlier totalitarian ideologies tend to obscure more than they enlighten. The concept of illiberalism allows us to make cross-national, ideational comparisons – especially transhistorical ones, writes Julian G. Waller Read more

The Loop

Cutting-edge analysis showcasing the work of the political science discipline at its best.
Read more
THE EUROPEAN CONSORTIUM FOR POLITICAL RESEARCH
Advancing Political Science
© 2026 European Consortium for Political Research. The ECPR is a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO) number 1167403 ECPR, Harbour House, 6-8 Hythe Quay, Colchester, CO2 8JF, United Kingdom.
linkedin facebook pinterest youtube rss twitter instagram facebook-blank rss-blank linkedin-blank pinterest youtube twitter instagram