04 July 2025
The Limits of Limiting Democracy
The intellectual and institutional architectures built around democracy are under pressure – and evolving: Germany reformed its fiscal constitution in March, Europe’s Stability and Growth Pact is undergoing a stress test, and in the United States, the White House is questioning the independence of monetary policy. Historically, democracy has an ambivalent reputation: Plato described it as both the freest and the most unstable of governments. But how far and in what ways can democracy be limited before it loses its democratic nature? Continue reading >>
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05 December 2024
When Democracy Prevails
On December 3 at 10:25 pm, the President of South Korea Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law, which lasted for 6 hours until it was lifted following the unanimous vote of the South Korean Parliament to immediately end its imposition. This blog analyzes the legal aspects of the President’s failed attempt to maintain a martial law regime and further reflects on the significance of this event for the evolution of democracy in South Korea. Continue reading >>
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07 November 2024
Is This a Constitutional Democracy
Indonesia, a country that has experimented with constitutional democracy since 1998, inaugurated its new president, Prabowo Subianto, on October 20, 2024. His so-called “Red and White Cabinet” may appear peculiar from the perspective of Western democracies due to its concentration of power. Prabowo assembled a “bloated cabinet” of 48 ministers constituting a hodge-podge of anti-Sharia pluralists, nationalists, Islamists, and others, all swearing fealty to the magico-religious Pancasila. We argue that Prabowo’s cabinet parallels the “family state”, which envisions the state as a large Indonesian family working together to maintain familial harmony. Continue reading >>
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11 June 2024
Delegitimizing by Procrastinating
In countries where populist movements have garnered significant electoral support, their self-proclaimed role as the sole representatives of the true will of a unified people has led them to assert that their democratic legitimacy surpasses the technocratic authority of constitutional courts. The requirement of supermajorities in the election of Italy's constitutional judges has, in combination with a changed political landscape, led to political deadlocks, entailing the risk of jeopardizing the Court’s operability and partisanship-based appointments. Continue reading >>
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03 May 2022
A Male, White and Conservative Constitutional Judge
In February and March 2022, three new members have been appointed to the French Conseil constitutionnel. A closer look at the new composition shows that France’s constitutional court is composed of a majority of male, white, elitist graduates with a right-wing tilt, drawn from the ranks of politicians and civil servants. In a broader sense, it is actually a good portrait of the current French political system, which seems to resemble some kind of oligarchy. Continue reading >>07 November 2019
Threats to Brazilian Democracy Gain Traction
Democracy in Brazil is under attack and facing a significant level of backsliding. The developments in recent years, from Dilma Rousseff’s parliamentary coup to Jair Bolsonaro’s ascent to power, have shown that democracy erodes in an incremental process. Lawmaker Eduardo Bolsonaro has recently taken another step in that direction when he publicly suggested that a 1964-1985 dictatorship’s decree should be repeated in case the Brazilian left-wing movements took a more radical position. His statements are prohibited under Brazilian law and Brazil’s institutions need to hold Eduardo Bolsonaro accountable in order to put brakes on the country’s democratic decline. Continue reading >>
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07 September 2019