Democracy in Decline: What a More Authoritarian World Means for Global Security and World Order

About this episode

The episode discusses the implications of democratic decline and the rise of authoritarianism on global security and world order.

Krithiga Narayanan hosts a conversation with Michael Coppedge, co-founder and principal investigator of the Varieties of Democracy Project (V-Dem), one of the world’s leading efforts to measure and analyze democratic change. Drawing on V-Dem’s latest global data, Coppedge examines how shifts within democratic systems are reshaping the international order and altering global power dynamics. The discussion explores how democratic erosion often unfolds gradually rather than through abrupt breakdowns, why electoral autocracies are becoming more common, and how changes in large and influential democracies, such as India, carry consequences that extend beyond national borders. Together, they assess whether coordination among autocratic leaders is strategic or ad hoc, what the data reveals about early warning signs of democratic decline, and where opportunities for democratic resilience still exist. Produced by the Philip Merrill Center for Strategic Studies at Johns Hopkins SAIS. Researched and hosted by Krithiga Narayanan; edited by Krithiga Narayanan

People in this episode

Host: Krithiga Narayanan

Guest: Michael Coppedge

Topics covered

• democracy
• authoritarianism
• global security
• international order
• democratic erosion
• electoral autocracies
• democratic resilience

Keywords

• democracy
• authoritarianism
• global power dynamics
• democratic change
• electoral autocracies
• democratic resilience
• V-Dem
• international relations
• India
• democratic erosion

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Varieties of Democracy Project, Philip Merrill Center for Strategic Studies, Johns Hopkins SAIS

Places: India

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