CIDOB Opinion 635 from December 2020 highlights the ongoing challenge to democracy posed by the actions of former US President Donald Trump and his supporters, known as "Trumpism". The report indicates that despite Trump's apparent acceptance of his defeat in the US elections, his ideology continues to pose a threat to democratic systems. This is because the Trumpism movement feeds off the inherent contradictions within the democratic system.
The main challenge to democracy highlighted in the document is the opposition between the substance and form of modern democracy. In traditional democratic theory and practice, the procedural aspect is a necessary condition for the expression of the people's will, which is the essence of democracy. However, Trumpism simplifies this relationship between substance and form into an exclusive opposition, reducing the procedural aspect of democracy to a hindrance rather than a facilitator for expressing the people's will.
The core argument of Trumpism is that democracy should be solely about substance (the people's will), and the procedural aspect (representative institutions) is an obstacle. The author suggests that the strength of Trumpism goes beyond exploiting the opposition between 'people' and 'system'. It lies in the truth behind the reasons it exploits. Trumpism works because it resonates with the structural problems of the current democratic model (of development), which has failed to deliver on its promise of equality and freedom for all.
The report argues that the threat of Trumpism to democratic systems will persist long after Trump, but simply defending formal democracy against the perceived threat of populism is a strategic mistake. Defending the system against the people only reinforces the argument of Trumpism, widening the gap between substance and form in democracy. The real challenge is to address the underlying causes that feed Trumpism, not just to defend the system against potential authoritarian tendencies.
