Founded in 1990, the Journal of Democracy is an influential quarterly journal which focuses on analyzing democratic regimes and movements around the world. The Journal is a branch of the International Forum for Democratic Studies at the National Endowment for Democracy, and is published by The Johns Hopkins University Press. Larry Diamond and Marc F. Plattner are its editors. [read more...]

Highlights — July 2011

The July issue features a set of articles exploring the relationship between poverty, inequality, and democracy in three countries, with an introductory essay by Francis Fukuyama. Another cluster looks the recent upheavals in Egypt and Tunisia. Also in this issue are essays on Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan, and Uganda.

Free articles (PDF):

    The Upheavals in Egypt and Tunisia: The Road to (and from) Liberation Square
    Tarek Masoud
    Egyptians threw off the thirty-year dictatorship of Hosni Mubarak, but now find themselves under essentially the same military tutelage that they had hoped to escape by launching their struggle.

    Strife and Secession in Sudan
    Khalid Mustafa Medani
    After decades of civil war, Sudan is set to divide into two nations on 9 July 2011. Yet a number of explosive issues—including the drawing of borders and sharing of oil revenue—have still not been resolved, and the prospects for peace appear to be dimming.

Highlights — April 2011

In this issue, Ivan Krastev examines the nature of authoritarianism in the postcommunist world, while Evgeny Morozov writes about authoritarian efforts to combat "liberation technology." A pair of articles on the Internet in China—analyzing how activists are using it and how the government is responding—round out a cluster on liberation technology. Other articles look at Brazil after Lula, the implications of Kenya's new constitution, and Jordan's 2010 elections. This issue also features essays on gay rights in Latin America, the 2010 Freedom House survey, and more.

Free articles (PDF):
    Paradoxes of the New Authoritarianism
    By Ivan Krastev
    Why are the unfree regimes of the former Soviet world proving so durable? A lack of ideology and—perhaps surprisingly—a degree of openness are proving to be not so much problems for authoritarianism as bulwarks of it.

    Liberation Technology: Whither Internet Control?
    By Evgeny Morozov
    Paradoxically, the rising profile of “liberation technology” may push Internet-control efforts into nontechnological areas—imprisonment rather than censorship, for example—for which there is no easy technical “fix.”

Highlights—January 2011

The first issue of the new year features a pair of articles by Journal of Democracy editors Marc F. Platter and Larry Diamond on the impact of the economic crisis as well as a cluster on recent developments in Latin America. Two essays focus on the Arab world—one, a look at cultural dynamics and the other, at Islamist electoral strategies. Other essays examine Hong Kong's democrats, African laws and institutions, peacebuilding operations, and more.

Free articles (PDF):
    Two Essays on China’s Quest for Democracy
    By Liu Xiaobo
    Imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, who was awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize, is best known for his eloquent and incisive essays. Two of them are featured here: “Can It Be That the Chinese People Deserve Only ‘Party-Led Democracy’?” and “Changing the Regime by Changing Society.”

    A Surge to the Center
    By Michael Shifter
    The left-right ideological divide has begun to narrow in Latin America as citizens and leaders increasingly choose a pragmatic approach to politics and embrace the rules of the democratic game.

Highlights—October 2010

In this issue, a set of essays explores how democracy is popularly understood in four parts of the world. Another cluster looks at the complex relationship between the devolpment-aid and democracy-aid communities. This issue also features essays on Yemen, the Philipines, the impact of elections in Africa, and more.

Free articles (PDF):
    Liberation vs. Control: The Future of Cyberspace
    By Ronald Deibert and Rafal Rohozinski
    Are technologies giving greater voice to democratic activists in authoritarian societies, or more powerful tools to their oppressors?

    The Upsurge of Religion in China
    By Richard Madsen
    Religion in various forms is burgeoning in the PRC today, and the ruling Chinese Communist Party cannot decide what to make of it—or do about it.
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  • Journal of Democracy contributor elected Prime Minister of Tibetan government-in-exile
    Lobsang Sangay, Harvard scholar and the author of a 2003 Journal of Democracy article, was elected the new Kalon Tripa, or Tibetan prime minister-in-exile, a position that is expected to take on even more of the political (as opposed to religious) authority that has previously been exercised by the Dalai Lama. Sangay's piece, “Tibet: Exiles’ Journey,” focused on the democratic phenomenon within the Tibetan diaspora.


  • "Latin America's Changing Political Landscape," a panel discussion based on a cluster of articles from the Journal's January 2011 issue.


  • "Paradoxes of the New Authoritarianism," the seventh annual Seymour Martin Lipset Lecture on Democracy in the World, presented by Ivan Krastev at the Embassy of Canada.


  • The Elusive Synthesis: Exploring the Changing Relationship Between Democracy Support and Development Aid," a panel discussion held at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace based on a cluster of articles in the October 2010 issue of the Journal.


  • An Exchange on Nicaragua (web only): Samuel R. Greene comments on Leslie Anderson and Lawrence Dodd’s July 2009 essay, “Nicaragua: Progress Amid Regress?” and the authors respond.
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