Tyranny of the Minority

In this incisive and razor-sharp analysis of one of the most important issues facing us today, leading Harvard professors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt draw on their combined expertise of over 40 years to examine how dictators come to power, and how they help to foster a poisonous culture of polarisation, fear and suspicion that persists even after their time in power is over.

Using contemporary examples including the Capitol riots and voter suppression in the US, as well as global examples from history including post-1945 Germany and Brazil and Chile during the '60s and '70s, the authors dissect conservative resistance to pluralism and modern threats to multiracial democracy (including the unwillingness of political parties to adapt to modern times, and a growing disregard for constitutional norms and free and fair elections) while imploring readers to stand up in its defence.

Focusing on the forthcoming American election as an essential case study, Saving Democracy offers us imperative tools for implementing urgent democratic reform, brilliantly illuminating how we can respond to the political battles ahead.

Steven Levitsky is a Professor of Government at Harvard University. Levitsky’s research focuses on Latin America and the developing world. He is the author of Competitive Authoritarianism and is the recipient of numerous teaching awards. Levitsky has written for Vox and The New York Times, among other publications.

Daniel Ziblatt is a Professor of Government at Harvard University and director of the "Transformation of Democracy" group at Berlin's Social Science Center (Germany). He is co-author of Tyranny of the Minority (2023), How Democracies Die (2018), Conservative Parties and the Birth of Democracy (2017), and Structuring the State: The Formation of Italy, Germany, and the Puzzle of Federalism (2006).