Tyranny of the Minority: Why American Democracy Reached the Breaking Point

Content Warning: The guide and source text discuss racism, hate speech, antisemitism, genocide and displacement of Black Americans, and systemic inequalities through US history.

Levitsky and Ziblatt turn to the US to show that constitutional hardball has also taken place in the country, with just as devastating consequences as in Hungary. In the aftermath of the Civil War (1861-1866), during the period known as the Reconstruction (1866-1900), the US nearly became a multiracial democracy. Scholars call this period America’s “second founding.” The authors use Wilmington, North Carolina to illustrate this point. In this town, Black Americans voted and held positions of power in the city council and on the police force. Politicians also needed their votes to win. Levitsky and Ziblatt underscore that these signs pointed towards the emergence of a more inclusive democracy.

Unfortunately, multiracial politics triggered an authoritarian backlash. White Americans, who believed in white supremacy, found these changes intolerable. The Democratic Party launched a counterattack. Using their constituents’ fear, politicians in the Democratic Party encouraged them to stockpile weapons, intimidate and commit violence against Black Americans trying to vote, and stuff ballot boxes after polls closed in primarily Black precincts. These tactics enabled the Democratic Party to regain power in North Carolina’s state legislature.