Democracy, Conflict, and Governance
Democracy, Conflict, and Governance
About the Program

The Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program is a leading source of independent policy research, writing, and outreach on global democracy, conflict, and governance. It analyzes and seeks to improve international efforts to reduce democratic backsliding, mitigate conflict and violence, overcome political polarization, promote gender equality, and advance pro-democratic uses of new technologies.

Program experts

Saskia Brechenmacher

Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Thomas Carothers

Harvey V. Fineberg Chair for Democracy Studies; Director, Democracy, Conflict and Governance Program

Mariano-Florentino (Tino) Cuéllar

President, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Steven Feldstein

Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Francis Fukuyama

Nonresident Scholar, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Rachel Kleinfeld

Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Beatriz Magaloni

Nonresident Scholar, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Jennifer McCoy

Nonresident Scholar, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Mara Revkin

Nonresident Scholar, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Oliver Stuenkel

Visiting Scholar, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Milan Vaishnav

Director and Senior Fellow, South Asia Program

Sarah Yerkes

Senior Fellow, Middle East Program

Richard Youngs

Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program

Latest work
In The Media
in the media
Mitigate Risk, Stand Strong: Defending Civil Society in 2025

By standing together across party affiliation with other organizations committed to democracy, civil society and freedom of speech and thought, foundations can remind the American people of the core values of the country.

Inside Philanthropy
research
Reintegrating Iraqis Returning Home After Conflict: Lessons from Variation Between Four Communities
United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
In The Media
in the media
The Source of Georgia’s Democratic Resilience
Journal of Democracy
In The Media
in the media
What a Trump Presidency Means for U.S. Business
New York Times
collection
U.S. Democracy Under Pressure

In recent years, multiple international indices have downgraded U.S. democracy.  Polarization, accusations of voting irregularities, political violence, and other negative trends are having a corrosive influence on the state of U.S. democracy and leaders’ ability to govern, address domestic problems, and craft stable policies.  This project brings together the work of scholars across the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace who analyze the problems afflicting U.S. democracy based on comparative perspectives and offer insights that can strengthen U.S. governing institutions and society.

see the collection
collection
U.S. Democracy Under Pressure

In recent years, multiple international indices have downgraded U.S. democracy.  Polarization, accusations of voting irregularities, political violence, and other negative trends are having a corrosive influence on the state of U.S. democracy and leaders’ ability to govern, address domestic problems, and craft stable policies.  This project brings together the work of scholars across the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace who analyze the problems afflicting U.S. democracy based on comparative perspectives and offer insights that can strengthen U.S. governing institutions and society.

see the collection
Digital Feature

Explore the Global Protest Tracker

A one-stop source for following crucial trends in the most significant antigovernment protests worldwide since 2017.

All work from Democracy, Conflict, and Governance

filters
1837 Results
in the media
Mitigate Risk, Stand Strong: Defending Civil Society in 2025

By standing together across party affiliation with other organizations committed to democracy, civil society and freedom of speech and thought, foundations can remind the American people of the core values of the country.

· January 14, 2025
Inside Philanthropy
research
Reintegrating Iraqis Returning Home After Conflict: Lessons from Variation Between Four Communities

Return policies and reintegration programming must consider the specificities of local communities and their internal dynamics.

· January 8, 2025
United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
in the media
The Source of Georgia’s Democratic Resilience

The case of Georgia illuminates how pluralistic values and civic mobilization can serve as primary sources of resilience, even when formal institutional safeguards falter. Georgia’s experience shows that democratic culture can deepen even as autocratization advances.

· January 6, 2025
Journal of Democracy
in the media
What a Trump Presidency Means for U.S. Business

While markets initially cheer the return of right-wing populists to office, such high hopes are almost never realized.

· December 29, 2024
New York Times
overhead shot of a table with ballots on them and people around the table sorting through them
commentary