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

by Steven Levitsky

The scores are revealing. More than 60 percent (161 of 261) of Republican members of Congress adopted undemocratic positions on at least five of the six questions, earning a grade of F. Another fifty-four Republicans adopted antidemocratic positions on at least four of the questions. Only sixteen Republicans adopted consistently democratic positions and thus earned an A. By this measure, then, a large majority of Republicans in Congress adopted consistently antidemocratic positions after the 2020 election and January 6, and more than 80 percent of them adopted mostly antidemocratic positions. Only 6 percent of Republicans behaved in a consistently democratic manner, and most of them had retired or lost primaries by 2022.