31 October 2024
Courts, Constitutions and Authoritarian Consolidation in Pakistan
In 2024, Pakistan has moved in a decisively authoritarian direction. The civilian and military hybrid ruling coalition that came to power in 2022 is using electoral engineering and constitutional entrenchment to consolidate power in the face of popular discontent and resilient political opposition. This process of electoral and constitutional consolidation does not move forward unimpeded, without resistance, and requires capturing and coordinating state institutions. In this blogpost, I show that formal constitutional safeguards provided little protection against the hybrid regime’s capture and weaponization of electoral monitoring bodies. Continue reading >>
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06 October 2024
Thinking Outside the (Ballot) Box
The Election Commission of Sri Lanka is riding a wave of praise after completing a peaceful presidential election on 21st September 2024. Less than a month before, however, the commission was found responsible for a breach of fundamental rights for its failure to conduct local government elections scheduled for 2023. This blogpost argues that the landmark decision sends a strong signal to all guarantor institutions in Sri Lanka to maintain their independence and to use their powers to discharge their functions. Continue reading >>
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