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Democracy and Its Critics Initiative

Conference | Balancing Majority and Minority Rights – The Dilemma of Majority-Constraining Institutions in an Age of Democratic Backsliding

February 28, 2025
9:15am - 5:30pm
Lower Level Conference Room, Adolphus Busch Hall Directions
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Democracy and Its Critics Initiative

Conference | Balancing Majority and Minority Rights – The Dilemma of Majority-Constraining Institutions in an Age of Democratic Backsliding

February 28, 2025
9:15am - 5:30pm
Lower Level Conference Room, Adolphus Busch Hall Directions
Rahel Freiburghaus
Speaker
Rahel Freiburghaus
Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Bern
Claudia Landwehr
Speaker
Claudia Landwehr
Professor of Political Theory and Public Policy, University of Mainz
Gretchen Helmke
Speaker
Gretchen Helmke
Thomas H. Jackson Distinguished University Professor, and Faculty Director of the Democracy Center, University of Rochester
Philip Manow
Speaker
Philip Manow
Professor of International Political Economy, University of Siegen
Christoph Möllers
Speaker
Christoph Möllers
Professor of Public Law and Jurisprudence, Faculty of Law, Humboldt-University Berlin; Permanent Fellow, The Institute for Advanced Study Berlin
Andrew O'Donohue
Speaker
Andrew O'Donohue
Ph.D. Student in Government, Harvard University; Graduate Student Affiliate, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Melissa Schwartzberg
Speaker
Melissa Schwartzberg
Professor of Politics, New York University
Sir Paul Tucker
Speaker
Sir Paul Tucker
Senior Fellow, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University; Research Fellow, Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, Harvard Kennedy School; Deputy Governor, The Bank of England (2009-2013)
Fabio Wolkenstein
Speaker
Fabio Wolkenstein
Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Vienna
Daniel Ziblatt
Speaker
Daniel Ziblatt
Director, Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies & Eaton Professor of the Science of Government, Harvard University; Unit Director, Transformations of Democracy, WZB Berlin Social Science Center
Michael Zürn
Speaker
Michael Zürn
Director of the Global Governance Research Unit, WZB Berlin Social Science Center; Professor of International Relations, Freie Universität Berlin

Contact

Susanna Sprague
Susanna Sprague
 
February 28, 2025
9:15am - 5:30pm
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Add to Calendar Add to Calendar
Lower Level Conference Room, Adolphus Busch Hall Directions

When are constraints on majorities justifiable from a democratic point of view? Which institutions are, and which, not? And what are the consequences of different types of constraints on majorities for the stability and resilience of democracy?

This conference brings together European and American political scientists, legal scholars, and political theorists in a series of panels to discuss the consequences of majority-constraining institutions on democracy. For a full agenda, see below.


** Please note: The first panel discussion will begin at 9:15 am. **

About

9:15 am - 9:30 am Welcome Remarks by Daniel Ziblatt and Michael Zürn

9:30 am - 11:00 am Panel 1 | Frameworks for Analysis: Conceptualizing Constraints on Majorities

  • Introduction: Daniel Ziblatt and Michael Zürn – Two Types of Constraints of Majorities
  • Christoph Moellers – Where is the Majority in the Counter-Majoritarian Difficulty? Some Reflections on a dubious Category
  • Melissa Schwartzberg – Protecting Interests Under Majority Rule

11:00 – 11:30 am Coffee Break

11:30 am – 1:00 pm Panel 2 | Limits on Democracy to Protect Individual and Minority Rights

  • Philip Manow – Why We Should Not Use V-Dem’s Liberal Democracy Index Any Longer
  • Rahel Freiburghaus – Countermajoritarian Institutions and Democratic Backsliding in Comparative Perspective
  • Gretchen Helmke – When Strong Institutions Undermine Strong Democracies

1:00pm - 2:00 pm Lunch Break

2:00pm – 3:30pm Panel 3 | Limits on Majorities to Assure a Role for Expertise

  • Andrew O’Donohue – Limiting Majority Control over Law and Courts
  • Sir Paul Tucker – Majority Rule and Conditions for Legitimate Independent Agencies
  • Michael Zürn – The Epistemization of the Political and the Politization of the Epistemical

3:30pm - 3:45pm Coffee Break

3:45 pm – 5:15pm Panel 4 | Are Constraints on Democracy Good or Bad?

  • Claudia Landwehr – Insulating and Changing the Rules of the Game. To What Extent Should Democratic Procedures Be Protected by Supermajority Requirements?
  • Fabio Wolkenstein – Remedying the Anti-Liberal Capture of Constitutional Courts
  • Daniel Ziblatt – Where the Majority Should Rule

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