October 2018

Volume 29, Issue 4

Free

Democracy’s “Near Misses”

What factors help a democracy to survive a crisis? A study of cases in which democracy suffered a steep decline, yet ultimately recovered and endured, offers new insights. In moments of crisis, unelected and nonmajoritarian actors can play a pivotal role.

Latin America's Shifting Politics

The Downfall of Malaysia’s Ruling Party

In Malaysia’s May 2018 general election, a grand bargain between ex–prime minister Mahathir Mohamad and reform leader Anwar Ibrahim produced a political earthquake that ended 61 years of rule by the United Malays National Organization (UMNO).

Liberal Democracy’s Crisis of Confidence

Public-opinion data from Pew Research Center show that global support for representative democracy is widespread, but often thin. Amid rising economic anxiety, cultural unease, and political frustration, citizens are increasingly open to alternative systems of government.

Election Watch

Reports on elections in Cambodia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mexico, Pakistan, Rwanda, Swaziland, Turkey, and Zimbabwe.

Documents on Democracy

Report on Nicaragua by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR); inaugural address of Ethiopia's new prime minister Abiy Ahmed; remarks by Peruvian president Martín Vizcarra at the Eighth Summit of the Americas; inaugural address of Colombian president Iván Duque