“I think that it’s not always understood that the ultimate day-to-day working of elections, like on the ground, facilitating, making sure somebody can vote, is done by your neighbors.”

In this last episode of the season, on Democracy in the United States, Nicola Sharratt describes her experiences as an election worker in Fulton County in Georgia, we debate just how pervasive corruption is in US civic and political life, and the impact of guns on college campuses. Nicola provides a fascinating perspective on life and democracy in the US, given her experiences as both a duel-citizen, and an archaeologist with an 800 year perspective on how societies deal with conflict and inequality.

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country.

Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠!

“Our biggest flaw as a nation, which resulted to us never really attaining independence or democracy, is that, somehow we have a flawed sense of nationalism. We are very family oriented as people, but the thing is, we value our family more than our country.”

Revisit this conversation from June 2024 on Democracy in The Philippines. Jackline and Jabs introduce me to a county that has survived waves of colonial occupation, military coups, a dictatorship, and intractable family dynasties. Our conversations about the role of violence and personal sacrifice in political struggles seem especially prescient, given recent events.

This week I am re-releasing all the interviews from this podcast in their full-length versions in preparation for the last episode of the season, an interview with anthropologist Nicola Sharratt on Democracy in the United States. Look out for that interview, coming later in December 2024.

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country.

Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode

“Oh, boy, the corruption. Even people who go and vote, whether they believe, whether they are skeptical a bit like me; they can still say it doesn't matter. Not because my vote doesn't matter but because eventually, when have we ever heard of a politician who had a promise that they kept?”

In Jun 2024, following the European Parliamentary Elections, I interviewed Federica Bressan and Piero Q.P. Carlucci about What Democracy Looks Like In Italy. Revisit this conversation on corruption, proportional representation, and alternative ways of cooperative democratic organization in Italian society that continue despite the breakdown in trust in national-level politics.

This week I am re-releasing all the interviews from this podcast in their full-length versions. This is in preparation for the last episode of the season, an interview with anthropologist Nicola Sharratt on Democracy in the United States. Look out for that interview, coming later in December 2024.

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country. Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠!

“If you have money, then you are in politics. In India the same thing happens. People in money come to politics and they think that they have to they spend money to win elections, and then they think their job is to take that money back.”

In this re-visited interview on What Democracy Looks Like In India from Sep 2022, Father and daughter Venkat and Vidhya demonstrate a generational shift in how democracy is perceived in India today. We talk about famous political dynasties, whether being a politician should be a full-time job, and the significance (or not) of religion in Indian politics.

This is the full version of the interview, including part two that was never published back in 2022 because of (chaotic!) events in my personal life at the time that caused the podcast to go on hiatus for a while.

This week I am re-releasing all the interviews from this podcast in their full-length versions. This is in preparation for the last episode of the season, an interview with anthropologist Nicola Sharratt on Democracy in the United States. Look out for that interview, coming later in December 2024.

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country. Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠!

“If you're part of this generation, there’s a training that many of us got just because we were young in that moment in history. The way we think about politics and the way we do politics is completely different. We were making important decisions and participating [in national politics] when we were 13, 14 years old.”

Revisit a conversation from Sep 2022 on Democracy in Chile, with Paloma Contreras and Rodrigo Retamal, in which we compare how people as young as 14 are taken seriously as political actors in Chile versus the US. Also, why making progress in society through major, transformative legislation is is difficult for many people to accept - may even feel traumatic - even when it’s in their best interests.

This week I am re-releasing all the interviews from this podcast in their full-length versions. This is in preparation for the last episode of the season, an interview with anthropologist Nicola Sharratt on Democracy in the United States. Look out for that interview, coming later in December 2024.

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country. Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠!

“How can we talk about Mexico being a democracy if you don't have the basic right to walk around freely secured in all the country, for example, and also to vote securely?…. How can you report on news and how can we have free speech in a country where journalists are killed every day?”

Revisit this conversation from Aug 2022 about What Democracy Looks Like in Mexico, with Brenda Lopez and David Palma. My guests describe the challenge to democracy posed by drug cartels that pour money into neglected local communities while also meting out brutal violence. Also the difference between Federalism in the US versus Mexico, and questions about immigration that seem even more relevant in 2024.

This week I am re-releasing all the interviews from this podcast in their full-length versions. This is in preparation for the last episode of the season, an interview with anthropologist Nicola Sharratt on Democracy in the United States. Look out for that interview, coming later in December 2024.

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country. Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠⁠⁠!

On Dec 3 President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea caused a political crisis by calling for Martial Law. To provide some background to this situation we are revisiting our interview about Democracy in South Korea, recorded back in February 2024.

This week I am re-releasing all the interviews from this podcast in their full-length versions. This is in preparation for the last episode of the season, an interview with anthropologist Nicola Sharratt on Democracy in the United States. Look out for that interview, coming later in December 2024.

In this interview my guests Kim and Zeno explain why every former president gets impeached, why compulsory conscription shapes the way voting is organized, and the pros and cons of a one-term Presidential limit. My guests also help me understand political acts that might be misunderstood abroad such as hunger strikes. 

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country.

Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠⁠!

“I find it hard to get too angry about the Monarchy partly because it seems SO miserable. You might be really rich but… You know the reason you were born. You never have to ask what “Why was I even born?”. You were born to be part of the apparatus of state. Your only purpose is to exist and have babies.”

This week I am re-releasing all the interviews from this podcast in their full-length versions. This is in preparation for the last episode of the season, an interview with anthropologist Nicola Sharratt on Democracy in the United States. Look out for that interview, coming later in December 2024.

So here we are returning right back to the beginning! To the pilot episode on Democracy in the UK with John Leighton and Nicola Sharratt (yes, the same!) recorded in July 2022 . A time when Queen Elizabeth was still alive and Boris Johnson was still relevant. Was that only two years ago? 

This episode features discussion of certain quirky little features of British political life, such as the Monarchy and the Monster Raving Loony party. But also topics that became regular themes on the podcast. Such as, what is considered an “acceptable” level of corruption in politics, versus a scandalous amount?  And who are the non-obvious political actors? Here we talk about the role of Student Unions, for instance.

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country.

Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠!

In Part Two of my conversation with Jackline and Jabs about voting and politics in The Philippines, I learn about the active role the Catholic Church plays in Filipino elections – something that hasn’t come up in other countries featured in this podcast before. Also the influence of China, everyday corruption, and whether electronic voting prevents violence on election day.

This is Part Two of Two episodes on The Philippines. The second half of the conversation will be posted soon after this one. 

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country.

Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠!

“There was hope for our country. And then it hit like a meteor. All the bad politicians starting popping up and they are winning out of nowhere.” What does democracy in The Philippines look like today? Jackline and Jabs introduce me to a county that has survived waves of colonial occupation, military coups, a dictatorship, and intractable family dynasties. But in 2016 it was hit by a then underestimated threat to democracy: Facebook. 

This is Part one of two episodes on The Philippines. The second half of the conversation will be posted soon after this one. 

What Democracy Looks Like In... is a podcast where ordinary voters explain how democracy works in their countries. In each episode an emigrant voter and a voter currently on the ground describe their lived experiences of democracy, of voting, and of trust versus corruption in their home country.

Find out more about the topics discussed in this episode and the series as a whole at ⁠⁠www.democracyinpodcast.com⁠⁠!