Democracies in the 21st century don't necessarily die by coup or political violence. Instead, they may slide into autocracy, often behind an election façade, as Hungary, Turkey and even Russia have demonstrated.

Two Pomona College alumni from the Class of 1995 painted a stark picture of how this is already underway in the United States during a 90-minute presentation titled “Understanding the Crisis of Democracy” on May 2 in Rose Hills Theater on campus during the College’s Alumni Weekend.

Corey Brettschneider ’95 is professor of political science at Brown University, where he teaches constitutional law and political theory. Daniel Ziblatt ’95 is Eaton Professor of the Science of Government and director of the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies at Harvard University.

Both Brettschneider and Ziblatt drew on research presented in their books on democracy.

Brettschneider's latest is The Presidents and the People: Five Presidents Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It, which won an American Bar Association Silver Gavel Award in 2025.

Ziblatt's newest book is The Tyranny of the Minority. It was coauthored with his colleague Steven Levitsky, who also collaborated with him on How Democracies Die (2018); both books are New York Times best-sellers. Brettschneider also cohosts “The Oath and the Office” podcast.

“Two facts are well-established,” said Ziblatt in response to the opening question from moderator Amanda Hollis-Brusky, professor of politics at Pomona. “Rich democracies never die. No country with a GDP per capita of over $17,000 has ever experienced democratic backsliding.” Second, he continued, “Old democracies never die. No democracy over the age of 50 has ever broken down.”