The next 12 months will show how the results of the “super election year” 2024, when billions went to the polls, will affect democratic debates. Disinformation, anti-system forces, and online hate are unlikely to disappear. One of the first things Alain Berset did after taking up the job as Secretary General of the Council of Europe in September was to propose an action plan to “re-think democracy”, the former Swiss government minister recently told the Le Matin Dimanche newspaper. Democracy is regressing in various countries, with polarisation and a hateful political climate part of the problem, Berset warned. Berset’s comments are especially significant given that the Strasbourg organisation he leads has the explicit goal of promoting and safeguarding democracy and human rights. But it’s not just in Europe where democracy is stumbling. Current global trends are once again showing that history does not move automatically towards more rule of law and more democratic rights. For the ...
