Brussels Launch Event of the Global State of Democracy 2023 Report

With Hadja Lahbib, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belgium; Adam Bodnar, Elected Senator of the Polish Senate; Dubravka Šuica, Vice-President of the European Commission (tbc); Erica Gerretsen, Director at the European Commission; Anders H. Eide, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway to the European Union; Christian Leffler, Chair of International IDEA’s Board of Advisors; Julia Leininger, German Institute for Development and Sustainability; and other speakers.

In an era defined by rapidly evolving geopolitical dynamics and new challenges and transformations to democracy, the need for robust democracies and accountable institutions has never been more crucial. The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) is proud to present the Global State of Democracy 2023 Report to the Brussels democracy community. 

A lineup of esteemed speakers and experts will help shed light on the current state of democracy worldwide and how democracy actors like the EU can explore new avenues for defending democracy against autocratization and reinforcing democratic values.

Since the inception of International IDEA’s Global State of Democracy Report in 2017, International IDEA has diligently tracked democratic trends in 174 countries across five regions focusing on essential democratic categories: Representation, Rights, Rule of Law, and Participation. This year’s Global State of Democracy Report underscores a pressing reality: democracy has faced continued contraction globally, with 2022 marking the sixth consecutive year witnessing more countries experiencing declines in democratic processes than improvements. 

The global deterioration in democratic performances necessitates broadening the vantage point when it comes to supporting democracy and taking a closer look at the role of formal and informal countervailing institutions in the advancement and protection of democracy. Going beyond traditional ‘checks and balances’, countervailing institutions also include the bodies, movements and institutions that protect the equilibrium of power between the people and the government, referred to in the Report as the ‘new checks and balances’.

Apart from presenting the Report’s main findings, the Brussels Global Launch Event will zoom in the EU’s role in safeguarding democracy at home and globally, shedding a light on the EU’s legacy of the past years and the lessons for the next term after the 2024 European elections.