Report says many democracies around the world are in decline

Many democratic countries are experiencing an erosion of their political system, intensified by the war in Ukraine and the economic crisis, according to a report released Wednesday by think tank IDEA International, the international institute for democracy and electoral assistance.

“We now see extremely unfavorable factors for democracy, which are intensified by the consequences of the economic crisis triggered by the pandemic and the economic consequences of the war in Ukraine,” said Kevin Casas-Zamora, secretary general of the Sweden-based organization. . .

According to him, this decline may result, for example, in questioning the credibility of the elections, in attacks on the rule of law or even in obstacles to civic space.

Political polarization in the United States

The democracies with the greatest democratic erosion, which the report classifies as “in decline” and which include the United States since last year, as well as Brazil, Hungary, Poland, India and Mauritius, increased from six to seven in 2022 with the addition of The Savior.

For Kevin Casas-Zamora, the case of the United States is especially worrying. According to the report, the country faces problems of political polarization, institutional dysfunctions, and threats to civil liberties.

“It is now clear that this fever has not abated with the election of a new government,” Casas-Zamora said.

According to him, this translates in particular into uncontrollable levels of polarization and attempts to “compromise the credibility of the election results without any evidence of fraud.”

He believes that the United States has also given “a visible setback” in terms of sexual and reproductive rights, “which is very exceptional because the majority of countries, (…), are advancing in the expansion of sexual and reproductive rights “.

Also in Europe

In contrast, 27 countries resorted to authoritarianism, more than double the number that resorted to democracy.

In Europe, almost half of the continent’s democracies, or 17 countries, have suffered democratic erosion in the past five years.

“Democracies struggle to effectively balance environments marked by instability and anxiety. Populism continues to gain ground around the world as innovation and growth stagnate or decline,” the report says.

It also points to “disturbing trends,” even in countries with medium to high levels of democratic standards.