Cross-Party Populism and the Erosion of Democratic Institutions: A Comparative Analysis of India and the United States.

This panel would explores how populism affects democratic stability in India and the United States.
As India is the world’s largest democracy and the United States the oldest, examining
populism’s impact in both countries provides a valuable perspective. Populism often frames
political issues as conflicts between “the people” and elite groups, potentially weakening
democratic foundations. The key question of this study is: To what extent does populism—
spanning multiple political parties and ideologies—drive democratic backsliding in both
nations?