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PODCAST

Democracy Paradox

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

government politics

All Episodes

49:07

Ian Shapiro Says the Left's "Preemptive Capitulation"...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/09/30

If we want people to support democratic capitalism, it has to be a kind of democratic capitalism that delivers for most people, and we haven't had that. Ian Shapiro What went wrong after the Cold War – and what can democracies learn from the opportunities they missed? Ian Shapiro, Sterling Professor of Political Science and Global Affairs at Yale University and author of After the Fall: From the End of History to the Crisis of Democracy, How Politicians Broke Our World, joins Democracy Parado...

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45:09

Noam Lupu Says Support for Democracy Is Growing in...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/09/16

The irony of democratic backsliding is a lot of these things are pitched to people and understood by people as actually pro-democratic. Noam Lupu Support for democracy is rising across the Americas after more than a decade of decline, but what kind of democracy do citizens actually want? Noam Lupu, director of Vanderbilt University’s Center for Global Democracy and LAPOP Lab, joins Justin Kempf to discuss findings from the latest AmericasBarometer and Pulse of Democracy. They explore why bett...

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49:58

Alexander Cooley and Alexander Dukalskis Fear...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/09/02

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 l...

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48:59

Suzanne Mettler Says the Rural-Urban Divide Threatens...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/08/19

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 Not...

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47:25

Rachel Beatty Riedl Says Economic Inequality Is...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/08/05

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’ pref...

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52:24

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

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/07/22

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”, “T...

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45:53

Jeffrey Kopstein Explains Why Polarization Turns Violent

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/07/08

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 conditi...

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49:05

Pepper Culpepper Says Good Populism Can Save Democracy

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/06/24

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 p...

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47:09

Dan Slater Says Authoritarian Ideologies Still Matter

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/06/10

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 t...

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57:57

Guillermo Trejo on Accountability, Impunity, and the...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/05/27

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 viole...

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46:36

Kenneth Roberts Says the Left Pays a Steep Price for...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/05/13

The left pays a very steep price when they break with democratic norms and procedures. Kenneth Roberts Kenneth Roberts is the Richard J. Schwartz Professor of Government at Cornell University. He is the coauthor (with Santiago Anria) of Polarization and Democracy in Latin America: Legacies of the Left Turn. 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 Hig...

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50:51

Sheri Berman Says the Democratic Recession Was Not a...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/04/29

If democracy wants to regain the upper hand, it has to not only do a better job than the other guys, but in fact, a good job. Sheri Berman This episode features a conversation with political scientist Sheri Berman on why today’s global "democratic recession" was actually predictable. Drawing from her deep historical research, Berman argues that every democratic wave eventually faces an "undertow," especially when the social and economic foundations of stability begin to fail. From the caution...

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45:09

Christopher Walker Revisits Sharp Power

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/04/15

Sharp power seeks to exploit the openness of free societies because their institutions are open. Christopher Walker Christopher Walker, a leading expert on authoritarian influence, returns to the origins of the concept of "sharp power," a term he helped develop to distinguish coercive and manipulative forms of influence from Joseph Nye’s idea of soft power. While soft power relies on attraction and persuasion, Walker explains that sharp power instead works by penetrating democratic institutio...

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47:59

Hugo Drochon Says Elites Are Inevitable

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/04/01

I don't think populism is necessarily a challenge to democracy. I think it's part and parcel of it. Hugo Drochon Hugo Drochon joins The Democracy Paradox to explore why elites are an unavoidable part of democracy – and why that may not be a bad thing. Drawing on classical elite theory, he explains how democratic systems depend on the constant circulation of competing elites and why outsider movements, including populism, can play a vital role in keeping democracy responsive. The conversation ...

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61:06

Milan Svolik Asks: Do Voters Really Support Democracy?

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/03/18

We are badly mismeasuring whether and how much people care about democracy. Milan Svolik In this episode of the Democracy Paradox, host Justin Kempf speaks with political scientist Milan Svolik, the Elizabeth S. & A. Varick Stout Professor of Political Science at Yale University and author of The Politics of Authoritarian Rule. Their conversation explores one of the central puzzles in contemporary democracy: why citizens who say they strongly support democracy sometimes vote for politicia...

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53:41

Minxin Pei Warns China Has Descended into...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/03/04

The paradox of dictatorship is that dictatorships do well when they do not have a genuine dictator. Minxin Pei In this episode of Democracy Paradox, Justin Kempf speaks with China scholar Minxin Pei about his book The Broken China Dream: How Reform Revived Totalitarianism and his argument that China under Xi Jinping has shifted from authoritarianism back toward totalitarianism. They explore the missed opportunities for political reform in the 1980s, the party’s post-Tiananmen survival strateg...

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51:51

Erica Frantz says Personalist Parties are Democracy's...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/02/18

Traditional programmatic parties serve as a critical guardrail for democracy. Erica Frantz In this episode, Justin Kempf speaks with Erica Frantz about her book The Origins of Elected Strongmen and the rise of personalist leaders in democracies. Frantz explains how leader-dominated political parties – more than populist rhetoric alone – can erode democratic institutions from within, drawing on cases from El Salvador to France. The conversation explores why voters support such lead...

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43:24

Javier Pérez Sandoval Reveals Democracy’s Hidden...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/02/04

By dismantling certain capacities today, you're making the democratic choices of tomorrow harder. Javier Pérez Sandoval In this episode, Javier Pérez Sandoval discusses his Journal of Democracy essay, coauthored with Andrés Mejía Acosta, on why populist leaders often “hollow out” the state. Moving beyond familiar debates about executive aggrandizement and democratic backsliding, Pérez Sandoval argues that democracy depends on the state’s capacity to deliver essential public goods – from healt...

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37:33

Kate Baldwin Explains Why Christianity Fights for...

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/01/21

The group of people who have an interest in defending liberal democracy might be broader than many academics, and maybe even liberals, would have shown. Kate Baldwin This episode features Yale political scientist Kate Baldwin in a conversation about her book Faith in Democracy, which challenges the assumption that religion is inherently hostile to democratic governance. Drawing on research from sub-Saharan Africa, Baldwin explains how Christian churches have often emerged as defenders of libe...

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50:15

Natalie Wenzell Letsa Describes the Autocratic Voter

Democracy Paradox ·

2026/01/07

You can take a cognitive bias so far down the road that you can live in an objectively very clear dictatorship and sit there and say, 'I live in a democracy.' Natalie Wenzell Letsa In this episode of The Democracy Paradox, host Justin Kempf speaks with political scientist Natalie Wenzell Letsa about why some voters genuinely support ruling parties in electoral autocracies. Drawing on her book The Autocratic Voter and fieldwork in Cameroon, Letsa explains how partisan identities form under dic...

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