Testing Democracy in the Donald Trump Era

This volume examines the state of American democracy during the “Donald Trump Era,” spanning 2015 to 2025.

From Trump’s first campaign to his return to the White House, this decade has shaken America’s political foundations. Edited by leading scholars, the volume brings together contributors from political science, law, sociology, media studies, and history to place these upheavals in sharp historical perspective. Together, they draw bold comparisons to past democratic crises such as the Civil War, Watergate, and the New Deal, while offering fresh interdisciplinary insights into polarization, populism, and democratic resilience. Case studies address presidential powers, the judiciary, elections, and the role of media and misinformation, offering a clear framework for assessing whether these shifts reflect routine democratic contestation or deeper signs of backsliding.

Testing Democracy in the Donald Trump Era offers scholars a comprehensive interdisciplinary analysis of a pivotal phase in U.S. politics, while giving students clear, accessible explanations of complex issues. It serves as a valuable resource for courses on government, democracy, and political change, with its timely focus on Trump’s second presidency, historical comparisons, and engagement with debates on democratic resilience.

Paweł Laidler is Professor of political science at the Institute of American Studies and Polish Diaspora at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. His research focuses on U.S. constitutionalism, with a special focus on politicization of justice, judicialization of politics and constitutionalization of justice.

Jared Sonnicksen is Professor of political systems, at the Institute of Political Science, RWTH Aachen University, Germany. His research interests include comparative government, federalism and multilevel governance, with a cross-cutting interest in democratic theory and challenges of democratic governance under complex conditions.

Maciej Turek is an assistant professor at the Institute of American Studies in Polish Diaspora of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. His academic interests lie in American politics, including U.S. political institutions, elections, campaign finance system, and the state of contemporary U.S. democracy.