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Quarterly The Declaration Heard Around the World

Jun 15, 2026 Zehra F. Kabasakal Arat , Aníbal Pérez-Liñán, Danielle Resnick, Kim Lane Scheppele, and Marci Shore

Notwithstanding recent setbacks for illiberal, populist, and authoritarian leaders in some countries, good-governance groups and experts on democratic decline continue to document a disturbing global trend toward “autocratization.” What remains to be seen is whether enough voters will wake up to the threat.

PS Quarterly regularly features short responses from experts on topics of global concern, and this time we consider the state of democracy. For over a decade now, scholars who study democratic governance have warned that it is under threat globally, marking a sharp contrast with the post-Cold War era of democratization and liberalization. In March, the respected research organization V-Dem warned that nearly one-quarter of all countries are experiencing “democratic backsliding.” Moreover, “six out of the ten new autocratizing countries” are in Europe and North America, with the United States suffering a faster deterioration “than any other democracy in modern times.”