{"id":83099,"date":"2026-02-12T09:30:23","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T07:30:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/revistaidees.cat\/analisis\/diari-de-les-idees\/idees-dactualitat-la-democracia-en-temps-dincertesa\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T14:44:51","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T12:44:51","slug":"idees-dactualitat-la-democracia-en-temps-dincertesa","status":"publish","type":"newspaper","link":"https:\/\/revistaidees.cat\/en\/analisis\/diari-de-les-idees\/idees-dactualitat-la-democracia-en-temps-dincertesa\/","title":{"rendered":"Idees d’actualitat – Democracy in times of uncertainty"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Liberal democracy is in crisis. The democratising trend that swept the world after the end of the Cold War, accompanied by a unipolar moment, peaked in 2006. Since then, it has done nothing but decline, a process that has intensified in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. More and more countries are moving towards a model of incomplete democracies, authoritarian, or semi-authoritarian regimes. Democracy is currently in global decline, with only a small percentage of the world’s population living in countries that can be considered full democracies. In 2025, for the first time in two decades, there were fewer democracies than autocracies on a global scale, according to the V-Dem Institute’s Democracy Report 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are experiencing a period of democratic decline that can no longer be interpreted as a succession of isolated crises, but rather as a structural and global trend. The latest international reports, such as the Global State of Democracy<\/a>, paint a disturbing picture: democracy is not only in decline in many countries, but is doing so in new, more subtle and often normalised ways. The combination of armed conflict, global insecurity, geopolitical changes, and the reordering of political priorities is pushing democracy\u2014and support for it\u2014into increasingly fragile positions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United States, traditionally considered a beacon of the liberal democratic system, exemplifies this moment of radical uncertainty. Donald Trump’s second term has shaken certainties about institutional resilience and multilateralism, and confirmed that no democracy, however consolidated it may seem, is immune to deterioration. This phenomenon does not occur in a vacuum: in 2025, more than half of countries experienced a decline in at least one of the key factors of democratic performance (strong political institutions, separation of powers, clear and stable rules, judicial independence, rule of law, effective enforcement of rules, fight against corruption, citizen participation, political pluralism, reduction of inequalities, good governance), while only a third showed progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Representation through democratic elections fell in 2025 to its lowest level in more than two decades, precisely in a year marked by a global super election cycle. Even more alarming is the situation of the rule of law, the weakest dimension of the system, with particularly notable setbacks in regions such as Europe, until recently considered a pillar of institutional strength. Civil rights have not escaped this dynamic either. Press freedom has suffered its most extensive decline since comparable data has been available, posing a direct threat to accountability and informed political participation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This situation becomes even more complex when combined with armed conflict and serious human rights violations. The case of Gaza highlights the current limitations of democratic assessment tools: a democracy can maintain relatively high internal indicators while, outside its borders, it engages in practices that systematically erode rights, representation, and the rule of law. This leads us to rethink an uncomfortable but unavoidable question: do the duties of democracy end at the borders of the state?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Europe, according to most indicators, remains one of the most democratic regions on the planet. The EU’s political project flourished during the unipolar era: some even predicted that the 21st century would be the European century, just as the 20th century had been the American century. However, not even Europe is immune to this global trend, and its democracies face significant challenges from both external influences and internal factors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Successive crises have ultimately weakened the EU’s image as a stronghold of democracy and material prosperity. China’s economic rise has challenged the theory of modernisation, which established a correlation between economic growth and democratisation. The theory that prosperity and the existence of a middle class make democratic regression less likely is also being questioned. The democratic decline experienced in Poland and Hungary, for example, despite the economic growth recorded since they joined the EU, is one example. Furthermore, the permanent crisis surrounding the EU has also called into question the ability of liberal democracies to maintain their normative narrative, i.e. their ability to respond to different crises through their institutions and regulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Spain, democracy faces challenges that go beyond simple political alternation and affect the very quality of the system. Growing polarisation erodes public debate and hinders basic consensus, while mistrust of institutions remains high, especially among young people. The partisan use of the judiciary and the recurrent blocking of key bodies weaken the perception of the independence of the rule of law. At the same time, disinformation, and the degradation of debate on social media threaten informed citizen participation. Added to this is the rise of authoritarian and exclusionary rhetoric, often linked to fears of immigration and social change, but which increasingly generates significant electoral returns, while economic inequality and precarious access to housing limit the real exercise of political equality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we look at the case of Catalonia, these global tensions take on concrete and recognisable forms. Data from the latest annual ICPS survey<\/a> reveal an ideological shift to the right, especially among young men and, increasingly, among older age groups as well. This shift is accompanied by a notable worsening of attitudes towards immigration: in just a few years, opinion has shifted from being divided to a clear majority in favour of tightening entry conditions, a position that extends, with varying degrees of intensity, among voters of almost all parties. This hardening coexists with clear gender divides. Young women still have a more positive view of immigration and greater support for gender equality, while among young men there is growing scepticism towards both feminism and the idea that women suffer structural discrimination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Democracy, both globally and locally, is not collapsing suddenly, but it is gradually eroding. Its survival will not depend on universal recipes or symbolic gestures, but on constant work to maintain, adapt and, when necessary, reinvent it. This means rethinking political inclusion in increasingly complex societies, strengthening the rule of law in the face of internal and external pressures, and confronting head-on the conflicts between security, rights, and democratic responsibilities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ultimately, democracy needs to reconnect with citizens and recognise their material and immaterial needs. On the one hand, material needs relate to issues of economic security: democracy must once again ensure equal opportunities among its citizens and correct inequalities. On the other hand, immaterial needs arise from the desire for recognition: democracy must reintegrate those citizens who do not feel part of the system and ensure their inclusion to strengthen and guarantee the existence of more cohesive societies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Photography: Pulse of Europe rally in Frankfurt am Main, Goetheplatz. 9 April 2017. Elke Wetzig. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.<\/sub><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Liberal democracy is in crisis. The democratising trend that swept the world after the end of the Cold War, accompanied by a unipolar moment, peaked in 2006. Since then, it has done nothing but decline, a process that has intensified in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. More and more countries are moving towards a model of incomplete democracies, authoritarian, or semi-authoritarian regimes. Democracy is currently in global decline, with only a small percentage of the world’s population living in countries that can be considered full democracies. 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