In the two years since International IDEA published its last Global State of Democracy report, it has become clear that the world faces significant headwinds for democracy. The number of democracies is declining, democratic backsliding is spreading, and the quality of democracy in established democracies is in decline as well. Moreover, anti-democratic trends have emerged in countries such as Brazil and India, and there is evidence of a broadening and deepening of societal divisions over the pandemic. Nonetheless, there are also signs of hope. Despite the headwinds, democratic innovations and practices continue to be introduced in countries such as Ethiopia, Sudan and Myanmar, and the Covid-19 pandemic has fueled civic activism that challenges authoritarian trends across the globe.

Global democracy scholars have proposed a wide range of institutional proposals. Some are based on a deliberative model in which individuals subjected to decisions (be they laws or policies) have the opportunity to present and evaluate their ideas under egalitarian conditions, take on board the views of others and recalibrate their preferences in light of better arguments. This approach is often infused with a cosmopolitan moral motivation, as endorsed by authors such as John Dryzek and Seyla Benhabib.

Other approaches focus on the normative ideals of democracy. These include the idea that individuals should have a democratic say in how transnational rules are formed to reduce the ‘global democratic deficit’, as articulated by scholars such as Tannsjo and Marchetti. This intrinsic claim is often complemented by justice-based arguments concerning a more equal distribution of resources and a reduction of global inequality.