Toward a Trumpian Conception of Democracy?

• In Event: Political Parties

Abstract

Donald Trump’s role in deepening democratic backsliding in the United States has been widely studied. Scholars have mainly focused on Trump’s institutional manipulation, his vitriolic rhetoric, and his particular brand of ethnonationalist populism. Yet, beyond the former president’s refusal to abide by the liberal democratic “rules of the game,” Trump’s own conception of democracy has received less scholarly attention. Trump’s anti-democratic behavior may, at first hand, seem to make an analysis of his conception of democracy superfluous. However, in a polity where democracy as a rhetorical theme has historically been a central part of political discourse, analyzing the meanings that elites present to the public remains crucial. Has Trump advanced a specific conception of democracy? If so, what are its main characteristics? Are Trump’s conceptions of rule outright authoritarian, as is often presumed – especially given recent openly authoritarian remarks? Or does he put forth a different kind of democracy, for a particular group, that rejects, reworks, or diverges from liberal commitments?
Through content analysis of Trump’s campaign materials from the 2020 and 2024 presidential elections, this paper analyzes the content of Trump's definition of democracy, including its underlying assumptions, normative commitments, and the boundaries of the demos. The events leading up to and on January 6th, 2021, illustrate the importance of attending more closely to these conceptions. A mob of Trump enthusiasts stormed the Capitol, endangering the very viability of American democracy in the name of democracy. The democratic intentions of the participants should not be taken at face value. What January 6th showed is that neither democratic commitments nor the meaning of democracy can be taken for granted. This paper can offer insights into the development of attitudes toward democracy among Trump's base and the discursive processes that contribute to democratic backsliding.

Author

• Vasiliki Maria Malouchou Kanellopoulou, The New School for Social Research