Democracy Paradox

Democracy Paradox
Democracy Paradox
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Is it possible for a democracy to govern undemocratically? Can the people elect an undemocratic leader? Is it possible for democracy to bring about authoritarianism? And if so, what does this say about democracy? ​​My name is Justin Kempf. Every week I talk to the brightest minds on subjects like international relations, political theory, and history to explore democracy from every conceivable angle. Topics like civil resistance, authoritarian successor parties, and the autocratic middle class challenge our ideas about democracy. Join me as we unravel new topics every week.

  1. 6日前

    Alexander Cooley and Alexander Dukalskis Fear Autocracies Are Hijacking the International Order

    There was an assumption that influence could only run one direction... but influence could run the other direction as well. Alexander Cooley Authoritarian governments are exercising growing influence not only within their own borders but across the institutions, markets, and organizations that shape global life. Alexander Cooley and Alexander Dukalskis, authors of Dictating the Agenda: The Authoritarian Resurgence in World Politics, join Justin Kempf to examine how authoritarian states have learned to reshape the liberal international order for illiberal ends. They discuss cooperation among autocracies, the growing economic power behind authoritarian influence, pressure on corporations and universities, and what these changes mean for liberalism, democracy, and the future of global governance. Alexander Cooley is the Claire Tow Professor of Political Science and Vice Provost for Research and Academic Centers at Barnard College, Columbia University. Alexander Dukalskis associate professor in the School of Politics & International Relations at University College Dublin. They are the authors of the recent book Dictating the Agenda: The Authoritarian Resurgence in World Politics.   The Democracy Paradox is made in partnership with the Kellogg Institute of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame.  Read the full transcript here. Key Highlights Introduction - 0:20Liberalism, Not Democracy - 3:18The Autocratic Axis -  15:01Profits Over Principles - 28:20What Comes After Liberalism? - 38:47Links Learn more about Alexander Cooley. Learn more about Alexander Dukalskis. Learn more about their book Dictating the Agenda: The Authoritarian Resurgence in World Politics (Oxford University Press, 2026) Learn more about the Kellogg Institute Apes of the State created all Music Email comments or questions to jkempf@democracyparadox.com Support the show

  2. 8月19日

    Suzanne Mettler Says the Rural-Urban Divide Threatens American Democracy

    We barely disagree with each other, but we can't stand one another's party.  Suzanne Mettler Suzanne Mettler is the John L. Senior Professor of American Institutions at Cornell University. She is the coauthor of Four Threats with Robert Lieberman and Rural Versus Urban: The Growing Divide that Threatens Democracy coauthored with Trevor Brown.  The Democracy Paradox is made in partnership with the Kellogg Institute of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame.  Read the full transcript here. Key Highlights Introduction - 0:20From a 2-Point Gap to a 20-Point Chasm - 3:10The NAFTA Betrayal Democrats Never Escaped - 15:01Why Are You Kowtowing to These Elites? - 23:31Power Without Prosperity - 34:35Links Read the book Rural Versus Urban: The Growing Divide That Threatens Democracy Learn more about Suzanne Mettler Learn more about the Kellogg Institute Apes of the State created all Music Email comments or questions to jkempf@democracyparadox.com Support the show

  3. 8月5日

    Rachel Beatty Riedl Says Economic Inequality Is Fueling Democratic Backsliding

    I'm by nature optimistic, but am extremely worried because of the structural moment we live in. Rachel Beatty Riedl Political scientist Rachel Beatty Riedl joins host Justin Kempf to examine how extreme economic inequality and the growing power of transnational elites have contributed to democratic backsliding. Drawing on experiences from Africa and other third-wave democracies, Riedl explains how concentrated wealth can weaken states, distort political competition, and prevent citizens’ preferences from being represented equally in government. Rachel Beatty Riedl is a Professor in the Brooks School of Public Policy and in the Department of Government at Cornell University and the Peggy J. Koenig ’78 Director of the Cornell Center on Democracy. She is the coeditor of Global Challenges to Democracy: Comparative Perspectives on Backsliding, Autocracy, and Resilience with Valerie Bunce, Tom Pepinsky, and Ken Roberts and the author of many articles including “Neoliberalism and the Third Wave" in the Journal of Democracy.  The Democracy Paradox is made in partnership with the Kellogg Institute of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame.  Read the full transcript here. Key Highlights Introduction - 0:20The Third Wave's Broken Bargain - 4:16Elites Without Borders - 14:50The Reagan Test - 24:35The Rocky Road Ahead - 34:26Links Learn more about the Cornell Center on Democracy  Read the book Global Challenges to Democracy: Comparative Perspectives on Backsliding, Autocracy, and Resilience Read her article “Neoliberalism and the Third Wave" in the Journal of Democracy Learn more about Rachel Beatty Riedl. Learn more about the Kellogg Institute Apes of the State created all Music Email comments or questions to jkempf@democracyparadox.com Support the show

  4. 7月22日

    Kim Lane Scheppele on Hungary's Narrow Path Back to Democracy

    You can only get to the point of restoring democratic institutions if you win the last election with such a huge majority that you really have the public with you as you make radical change. Kim Lane Scheppele  Kim Lane Scheppele is the Laurance S. Rockefeller Professor of Sociology and International Affairs in the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs and the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University. Some of her articles include “Autocratic Legalism”, “The Rule of Law and the Frankenstate: Why Government Checklists Do Not Work”, “How Viktor Orbán Wins," and most recently “Can Péter Magyar Restore Hungary's Democracy?”   The Democracy Paradox is made in partnership with the Kellogg Institute of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame.  Read the full transcript here. Key Highlights Introduction - 0:20Magyar's Playbook - 3:24A Party Without a Party - 18:26Breaking the Rules to Save Democracy - 30:48Looking to the Future Instead of History - 44:29Links Learn more about Kim Lane Scheppele Read her Journal of Democracy article “Can Péter Magyar Restore Hungary's Democracy?” Learn more about the Kellogg Institute. Apes of the State created all Music Email comments or questions to jkempf@democracyparadox.com Support the show

  5. 7月8日

    Jeffrey Kopstein Explains Why Polarization Turns Violent

    The question is not whether polarization is dangerous, but the conditions under which it becomes violent. Jeffrey Kopstein Jeffrey Kopstein joins the Democracy Paradox to discuss when polarization turns violent. Drawing on his Journal of Democracy essay “When Polarization Turns Violent” and his book with Stephen Hanson, The Assault on the State, Kopstein explains why affective polarization, struggles over belonging, and the weakening or politicization of state authority can create the conditions for organized political violence. The conversation ranges from Charlottesville to lynching in the American South, pogroms in Eastern Europe, communal violence in India, and the rise of patrimonial leaders who treat the state as personal property rather than an impersonal rule-of-law institution. The Democracy Paradox is made in partnership with the Kellogg Institute of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame.  Read the full transcript here. Key Highlights Introduction - 0:20From Disagreement to Hate - 2:55Who Owns the Polity? - 13:51When the State Steps Aside - 26:32The Assault on the State - 36:10Links: Learn more about Jeffrey Kopstein. Read his Journal of Democracy article "When Polarization Turns Violent.” Learn more about his co-authored book The Assault on the State. Learn more about the Kellogg Institute. Apes of the State created all Music Email comments or questions to jkempf@democracyparadox.com Support the show

  6. 6月24日

    Pepper Culpepper Says Good Populism Can Save Democracy

    We think the next ten years are going to be anti-billionaire. Pepper Culpepper Pepper Culpepper joins the Democracy Paradox to discuss when populism can strengthen democracy. Drawing on his Journal of Democracy article “When Populism Can Be Good” and his book with Taeku Lee, Billionaire Backlash, Culpepper argues that corporate scandals can channel public anger toward billionaires and large corporations in ways that reinforce democratic accountability. The conversation explores good and bad populism, economic unfairness, AI, regulation, and whether democratic governments can still stand up to concentrated corporate power. The Democracy Paradox is made in partnership with the Kellogg Institute of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame.  Read the full transcript here. Key Highlights Introduction - 0:20Good Populism - 3:05Latent Opinion - 12:33The Next Progressive Era - 20:42Regulation vs. Abundance - 35:48Links Learn more about Pepper Culpepper. Learn more about his Journal of Democracy article “When Populism Can Be Good.” Learn more about his book Billionaire Backlash: The Age of Corporate Scandal and How It Could Save Democracy (Bloomsbury, 2026). Learn more about the Kellogg Institute. Apes of the State created all Music Email comments or questions to jkempf@democracyparadox.com Support the show

  7. 6月10日

    Dan Slater Says Authoritarian Ideologies Still Matter

    We think of World War II as this global democratizing event, but what it really did was strengthen left-wing authoritarianism. Dan Slater Dan Slater is the James Orin Murfin Professor of Political Science and the Director of the Center of Emerging Democracies at the University of Michigan. He is the coauthor (with Joseph Wong) of the book From Development to Democracy: The Transformations of Modern Asia. More recently, he authored the article "The Authoritarian Origins of the Third Wave" in the Journal of Democracy.  The Democracy Paradox is made in partnership with the Kellogg Institute of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame.  Read the full transcript here. Key Highlights Introduction - 0:20Why Scholars Stopped Taking Ideology Seriously - 3:02The Difference Between Authoritarian Left and Right - 5:31Why the Third Wave Narrative Gets the History Wrong - 20:45Can Democracy Survive Ideological Extremes - 33:43Links Learn more about Dan Slater. Read his article in the Journal of Democracy, "The Authoritarian Origins of the Third Wave." Learn more about the Center for Emerging Democracies. Learn more about the Kellogg Institute. Apes of the State created all Music Email comments or questions to jkempf@democracyparadox.com Support the show

  8. 5月27日

    Guillermo Trejo on Accountability, Impunity, and the Fate of New Democracies

    What happens when the violent state forged under autocracy survives into democracy? Guillermo Trejo In this episode of The Democracy Paradox, Kellogg faculty fellow Guillermo Trejo discusses his new book, Accountability Shock, coauthored with Lucía Tiscornia and Juan Albarracín. Trejo explains how authoritarian security forces can survive democratic transitions and fuel organized crime, and why truth commissions, prosecutions, and institutional reforms are essential tools for preventing violence and building more durable democracies. The Democracy Paradox is made in partnership with the Kellogg Institute of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame.  Read the full transcript here. Key Highlights Introduction - 0:20What Is the State? - 3:23From Order to Crime - 9:12The Accountability Shock - 19:10Beyond Elections - 37:20Links Learn more about Guillermo Trejo. Learn more about his book Accountability Shock: Why Transitional Justice Prevents Criminal Wars in New Democracies (Cambridge University Press, 2026) Learn more about the Notre Dame Violence and Transitional Justice Lab. Learn more about the Kellogg Institute. Apes of the State created all Music Email comments or questions to jkempf@democracyparadox.com Support the show

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Is it possible for a democracy to govern undemocratically? Can the people elect an undemocratic leader? Is it possible for democracy to bring about authoritarianism? And if so, what does this say about democracy? ​​My name is Justin Kempf. Every week I talk to the brightest minds on subjects like international relations, political theory, and history to explore democracy from every conceivable angle. Topics like civil resistance, authoritarian successor parties, and the autocratic middle class challenge our ideas about democracy. Join me as we unravel new topics every week.

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