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Democratic backsliding and the rule of law in the European Union

Democracy
European Union
European Parliament
S03
Tom Theuns
Leiden University
Natasha Wunsch
Sciences Po Paris


Abstract

The principles of democracy and the rule of law form the bedrock of European Union’s legal and political unity. However, this bedrock is currently under considerable pressure. We are witnessing a wave of illiberal and antidemocratic tendencies in EU member states that exposes vulnerabilities within the Union at a time when interstate conflict has returned to the European continent and the need for unity and coherence is paramount. Against this backdrop, the decline of democratic norms and the rule of law by EU member state governments can undermine the EU’s internal cohesion, destabilize its normative structure, and compromise its regional and global standing. Democratic and rule of law backsliding in the EU is principally discussed with reference to developments in Hungary and Poland. As well as both being subject to Article 7 procedures, these states are in open conflict with EU institutions on issues such as undermining judicial independence and exerting partisan control over the media. These developments not only challenge the democratic fabric of their societies but also pose a threat to the EU’s fundamental values and European legal and political cooperation. Despite some recent headway, European actors and procedures have proven largely ineffective in stemming the tide of such authoritarian currents. This section seeks to probe the intertwining dynamics of democratic and rule of law backsliding and the operational dynamics of the European Union. How do escalating tensions around the respect for fundamental values affect the collective respect for EU law? Could these disagreements compromise the authority of the Commission and the Court of Justice? How does the involvement of governments in conflict with EU institutions for democratic and rule of law backsliding in the Council and European Council affect the operation of these institutions? What is the role and potential of the European Parliament to act as an effective check on executive overreach in EU member states? We welcome full panels as well as individual papers addressing three major themes: 1) Understanding present-day challenges to democracy and rule of law in the EU, from empirical, theoretical or normative perspectives; 2) The impact of democratic and rule of law backsliding and subversion on EU internal and external cooperation; 3) The responses of different European actors to the violations of democracy and the rule of law, and the ways in which these responses can potentially shape the future trajectory of the Union.
Code Title Details
P029 Conceptualising democratic and rule of law backsliding View Panel Details
P030 Consequences of democratic backsliding View Panel Details
P042 Domestic and transnational opposition against authoritarian governments – The role of opposition stakeholders in the fight against democratic backsliding View Panel Details
P049 EU actors and instruments addressing the autocratisation challenge in the EU’s dissensus-stricken neighbourhood View Panel Details
P059 EU multilevel governance and the rule-of-law conditionalities View Panel Details
P062 EU responses to democratic backsliding View Panel Details
P078 Governance by informality in the European Union View Panel Details
P145 Theoretical Approaches to Democratic Defence in Europe I View Panel Details
P146 Theoretical Approaches to Democratic Defence in Europe II View Panel Details
P155 Varieties of dissensus over liberal democracy in the EU: Mapping national and European actors View Panel Details