Democracy

State and local governments have constitutional and legal powers that can be harnessed to challenge repressive federal actions and to advance meaningful freedom and equality.

Tracking the use of State power requires systematically identifying linkages between individual developments and broader trends. This interactive graphic offers one method.

Bringing together expert analysis that traces this erosion, assesses the risks for democratic governance, and outlines pathways to rebuild or even reinvent these safeguards.

Our democratic institutions are under strain, but one thing must be true if any reform is to take hold: government must deliver, and that delivery must be felt by all people.

America’s civil service, built for a bygone era, urgently needs bold, comprehensive reform to build a government capable of delivering for the 21st century.

Just Security's Reinvention Blueprints series features expert proposals to rebuild U.S. government institutions so they serve the public and meet today's challenges.

Domestic policy experts offer principles for reinvention meant to inform the work of policymakers, advocates, and governance rebuilders as they redesign federal institutions.

Ukraine's survival in the face of Russia's aggression demonstrates how U.S. support to civil society and democratic institutions becomes a national security asset.

Georgian Dream is crushing Georgia's civil society, courts, and opposition to entrench one-party rule and Russian influence; only targeted U.S. and EU sanctions can stop it.

Research shows that, more than military strikes or sanctions, authoritarians fear support for independent media, anti-censorship tech, and civil society.

Hungary's anti-corruption win offers U.S. democracy advocates lessons, but success requires a credible messenger and a concrete plan.

The attempt to condition states' counterterrorism funding on changes to election rules is unlawful and likely to be challenged in court.