Hoover InstitutionStanford University
Why Do Some Democracies Survive While Others Fail?

Published June 2, 2022

New democracies fail when leaders violate the rule of law and use extraconstitutional actions to stay in power. During the Glorious Revolution, England established a Bill of Rights that limited royal authority and made it clear that maintaining the throne required sovereigns to protect the rights of the people. The US Constitution and Bill of Rights echoed these ideas and ensured the protection of individual liberties.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Why do some democracies survive while others fail?
  2. How does the Bill of Rights empower our citizens?

Additional Resources:

  • Read “Constitutions and Commitment: The Evolution of Institutions Governing Public Choice in Seventeenth-Century England,” by Douglass C. North and Barry R. Weingast. Available here.
  • Read “Constitutional Stability and the Deferential Court,” by Sonial Mittal and Barry R. Weingast. Available here.
  • Read “Legal Order: Lessons from Ancient Athens,” by Federica Carugati, Gillian K. Hadfield, and Barry R. Weingast. Available here.

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