Political Violence & US Democracy
How does political violence impact the foundations of our democracy?
The Violence and Democracy Impact Tracker (VDIT) — a resource from Protect Democracy and the SNF Agora Institute — calculates the impact of political violence on eight distinct pillars of democracy in the United States. On a quarterly basis, the tracker assesses political violence’s impact on the freedoms of expression and association, access to the vote, election administration, equality before the law, individual liberties, and the independence of the judiciary and legislature. VDIT also collects a global panel of experts’ insights into the most concerning emerging trends and top issues to watch.
VDIT began collecting data in July of 2023. The most recent tracking confirms that political violence is eroding American democracy on multiple axes — especially when it comes to the administration of elections. Here are the key takeaways from the latest results:
Latest DataThreat Scores
Timeline of VDIT Scores
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WHAT THE SCORES MEAN
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Level 1
Within range of a well-functioning democracy
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Level 2
Moderate violations atypical of a well-functioning democracy, but that don’t yet threaten breakdown of this element of democracy
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Level 3
Violations that signal significant erosion of democracy quality in this area and warn of high potential for breakdown in future
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Level 4
Critical violations that seriously threaten this element of democracy’s near-term survival
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Level 5
Violations severe enough to make this aspect of the system non-democratic
What the Score Means
| Level | Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4 | Level 5 |
| Description | Within range of a well-functioning democracy | Moderate violations atypical of a well-functioning democracy, but that don’t yet threaten breakdown of this element of democracy | Violations that signal significant erosion of democracy quality in this area and warn of high potential for breakdown in future | Critical violations that seriously threaten this element of democracy’s near-term survival | Violations severe enough to make this aspect of the system non-democratic |
Overall…
The effect of political violence on American democracy is atypical of a well-functioning democracy, but not currently indicative of imminent democratic breakdown.
On Elections…
Elections remain the most urgent area of concern, though the current level of concern is lower than it has been throughout VDIT’s history. Still, experts assess that political violence’s impact on elections signals significant erosion and a high potential for the breakdown of election processes in the future.
On Threats and Intimidation…
Experts are more concerned about intimidation than other aspects of political violence — 71% are thinking about intimidation or indirect threats “a lot” or “a great deal” compared to 58% for direct threats and 51% for physical harm.
Top Concerns
Experts most frequently expressed concerns about:
VDIT UpdatesRead the Full Launch Report
Baseline levels of social violence are high in the United States, and violent threats and intimidation are not always accompanied by outright aggression. Amidst this complex landscape, where does our democracy stand?
VDIT Updates
April – June 2024
Jan. – March 2024
Oct. – Dec. 2023
What Protect Democracy is doing to combat political violence
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