Democratic backsliding refers to a gradual yet significant degradation in the quality of democracy, as democratic norms are slowly eroded, democratic institutions are steadily weakened, and democratic ‘gatekeepers’ are undermined or silenced altogether. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan are prominent examples of agents of democratic backsliding. So far, I have shown that Israel experienced democratic backsliding during Netanyahu’s terms. Still, one should remember that mass demonstrations and strikes are a common reaction to democratic backsliding and do not always succeed in derailing the backsliding. It remains to be seen whether and how the United States will use its significant leverage over Israel to prevent democratic backsliding.

Source: The Guardian May 19, 2023 12:04 UTC