COMPARING DEMOCRACIES

This course provides a deep examination of the workings of different democratic political systems in various parts of the world. Ranging from presidentially dominant to parliament-dominant, from low electoral turnout to mandatory
universal voting, this course will reveal the impressive distinctions among the world’s democracies. This course will also make clear the crucial role of political culture of values in fortifying democracies. We also examine how to consolidate weak democracies, as well as studying the rise of ‘hybrid democracies’ and mixed democratic-autocratic systems of government. Requirements include class participation, exams, research papers, on-line discussion board participation, and library research.