Political scientists Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt reveal how democracies today are collapsing through slow, legal erosion from within, driven by polarized societies.

We often picture democracies ending in sudden, dramatic moments: crowds in the streets, violent coups, and governments toppled by force.

But the real threat to our democracies today is quieter and more insidious.

Democracies are increasingly endangered from within, as elected officials use legal tools to chip away at institutions and undermine long-standing norms.

How has this slow weakening seemingly gone unnoticed, and is there any way to stop it?

In their 2018 book How Democracies Die, political scientists Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt explore how fragile democratic norms have been challenged and ignored over decades.

Looking at examples from countries such as Venezuela and the U.S., Levitsky and Ziblatt explain why preserving democracy now demands restoring mutual tolerance and institutional restraint.