The 2022 Slovenian Parliamentary Elections

By Simona Kustec Background After the last parliamentary elections in 2018 the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDP) was a relative winner. Nonetheless, they were not able to form a coalition government.  Instead, Marjan Šarec, as the second best by the election results formed a minority left-centered government. Still, he resigned just before the Covid-19 pandemic became widespread.... Continue Reading →

Two New Members Elected to the Swiss Federal Council

By Stephan Kyburz The Swiss Federal Council – Collective Executive Power On Tuesday, December 7th, the Swiss parliament elected two new Federal Councillors. While Albert Rösti (55) of the People’s Party (SVP) was elected as expected, Elisabeth Baume-Schneider (59) of the Social-Democratic Party (SP) was a surprise winner, defeating the favored Eva Herzog (SP). Mrs.... Continue Reading →

Simon Usherwood on Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, and the Nested Games of British Politics

Simon Usherwood is a Professor of Politics & International Studies at the Open University, Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Surrey's Centre for Britain & Europe and a National Teaching Fellow. Simon coauthored (along with John Pindar) The European Union: A Very Short Introduction. He recently coedited (along with Agnès Alexandre-Collier and Pauline Schnapper) The Nested... Continue Reading →

Nested Games

Become a Patron! The Nested Games of Brexit It's typical to talk about a political calculus, but less common to think about politics like calculus. A common misconception about politicians is they care about public opinion. This is a half-truth. They do care about what voters think, but they don't care about the totality of... Continue Reading →

Martin Conway Believes “Democracy Owes its Durability Not to its Principles but to its Flexibility.” Democracy in Western Europe from 1945 to 1968

Martin Conway is the author of the new book Western Europe’s Democratic Age: 1945—1968 and a Professor of Contemporary European History at the University of Oxford.   Where you and I and, I think, many others start from an assumption that somehow there is a thing called democracy and we sort of know what it is.... Continue Reading →

How Western Europe Embraced Democracy

Western Europe's Democratic Age Over the last few years it has almost become cliché to refer to the democratic recession. Many of the most fragile democracies have reversed or even collapsed. Among the most recent involves the collapse of the government in Afghanistan due to the withdrawal of American troops. The experience serves as a... Continue Reading →

History of Democracy in Germany Podcast #29

Michael Hughes explains the history of democracy in Germany. Michael is a professor of history at Wake Forest University. He discusses his most recent book Embracing Democracy in Germany: Political Citizenship and Participation, 1871-2000.   A History of Democracy in Germany The German Question haunted international relations for generations. Like China, it was a rising... Continue Reading →

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