Q+A
In what ways does Inauguration Day 2025 symbolize the resilience or fragility of American democracy?
On January 20, 2025, as Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, the nation reached a critical turning point.
News and Analysis
Read the latest news, commentary, and analysis from the Ash Center.
Newest
Commentary
The Real Numbers: Tracking Crowd Sizes at Presidential Rallies
This post uses the Crowd Counting Consortium’s data on U.S. protest activity since 2017 to estimate and compare the average size of the crowds at political rallies featuring Donald Trump, Joe Biden, and, since late July 2024, Kamala Harris.
Q+A
Exiled Venezuelan opposition leader on the election, the protests, and the future of the country
HKS research fellow Freddy Guevara MC/MPA 2024 remains optimistic about a democratic transition and that the July election was the beginning of the end for the Maduro regime.
Feature
Political Violence in America: Causes, Consequences, and Countermeasures
In the wake of this most recent incident, the Ash Center convened a panel of experts to discuss Americans’ attitudes toward political violence and explore strategies for counteracting and de-escalating future violent acts to prevent them from becoming an accepted social norm.
Feature
Grassroots efforts to increase voting are gaining momentum in these states, even as other states make voting harder
Podcast
Episode 5: Independent Protest Journalism
Host Jay Ulfelder sits down with journalists Talia Jane, Raven, and Sean Beckner-Carmitchel to discuss the impact of independent journalism on protest activity and social movements.
Arrest student protesters, wait or negotiate? Colleges can use ‘ladder of harm’ to determine appropriate response to Gaza protests on campus
In his latest article for The Conversation, Archon Fung presents two key questions at the heart of these debates: Should campuses allow civil disobedience, suppress dissent, or seek peaceful solutions? And when, if ever, should police force be used against protests?
Podcast
Episode Four: The Movement to Stop Cop City
Host Jay Ulfelder sits down with Joseph Brown, Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Massachusetts Boston, to discuss a mass mobilization in Atlanta to stop a new a police training center amid environmental and community rights concerns.
Feature
How Portland, Oregon Embraced Voting Reform — and Democratic Innovation
Portland, Oregon passed one of the most progressive voting reforms in the country. Max Kiefel, Nick Chedli Carter, and Archon Fung explore the motivating factors behind this big change.
Feature
What led to the rise — and then fall — of participatory democracy in Colombia?
Research by Democracy Postdoctoral Fellow Jamie Shenk highlights how referendums in Colombia served as a powerful tool to block the expansion of mining and oil enterprises before the practice was curbed by the country’s Supreme Court.