Notre Dame political scientist: Threats to American democracy have never been more serious

Matthew Hall, director of the Rooney Center for the Study of American Democracy, said the threats to American democracy have never been more serious. Although the 2022 midterm elections will not be where America loses its democracy, he said, they could very well set the stage for its downfall.

“Is it really as bad as it seems? The answer is yes,” said Hall. “The key is not that what happens in the midterm elections will be inherently anti-democratic — it’s that they may put in place officials who could then undermine our democracy in 2024. We’ve already seen members of Congress willing to overthrow perfectly legitimate election results, and we may see a lot more of that in 2024 if Republicans take the House and the Senate.”

The Rooney Center today released a nationally representative survey that reveals areas of grave concern for the state of American democracy.