“Democracy is fragile. You have to fight for every bit, every law, every safeguard, every institution, every story. You must know how dangerous it is to suffer even the tiniest cut. This is why I say to us all: we must hold the line.”
Maria Ressa
Multiple research projects focusing on assessing the state of democracy worldwide have arrived at a unanimous conclusion in their reports. The Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Institute, the Democracy Index by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI), and the Freedom in the World report by Freedom House, each employing different methodologies and indicators, have all demonstrated declines in democratic quality and freedoms since the 2000s. Additionally, a regression in the number of democracies in the world has been documented.
Assessing the level of political participation is a key criterion in evaluating democracy. The Participatory Component Index, an example of a democracy index published annually by the Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Institute, measures the extent of citizen participation in both electoral and non-electoral political processes. It considers factors such as the presence of civil society organizations, mechanisms for direct democracy, and participation and representation in local and regional governments. The updated graph from 2024 indicates a downward trend in global political participation since the 2010s.
This trend is concerning as the success of democracies relies heavily on the active involvement of citizens. Political scientists Sidney Verba and Norman H. Nie emphasized the direct correlation between levels of participation in decision-making and the extent of democracy, stating that "where few take part in decisions, there is little democracy, and the more participation there is in decisions, the more democracy there is." Current discussions frequently identify phenomena such as democratic disenchantment, political apathy, and diminishing political participation as potential threats to the democratic way of life. These issues underscore the importance of addressing barriers to political engagement and fostering opportunities for citizens to actively participate in democratic processes.
Simultaneously, there has been increasing attention given to the concept of political emotions. In the past, it was widely believed that emotions posed a threat to rationality and were thus deemed necessary to be “tamed” within political and public spheres. However, the contemporary understanding now recognizes that emotions and rationality are distinct aspects of cognition that often work together and complement each other in the decision-making processes. While emotions provide important evaluations that can inform our rational choices and inspire action, rationality can regulate and guide emotional responses, ensuring a balance between emotional impulses and logical reasoning.
The functions of emotions, such as evaluation and mobilization, have made them an important subject of study in political science and democracy research. Emotions like compassion, hope, or even anger can motivate citizens to actively participate in democratic processes. However, it's important to note that emotions in the political sphere not only offer advantages but also pose potential dangers as tools of populism, propaganda, and public opinion manipulations.
The emotional aspect of politics is therefore complex and crucial and requires increasing awareness of how emotions function constructively in the political realm, as well as understanding their potentially dangerous implications. A critical perspective along with and toward our own and others’ political emotions and the establishment of a shared political-emotional language may help citizens to protect and defend our fragile democracies, to "hold the line".
