New Portuguese Edition of the Democracy Report 2026 Now Available
The Centre for International Studies at Iscte (CEI-Iscte) has made available the Portuguese version of the annual report by the Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-Dem), entitled Democracy Report 2026: Unravelling the Democratic Era?. As a member of the international V-Dem network through the Regional Centre for Southern Europe, CEI-Iscte is responsible for translating and disseminating the Portuguese edition of the report, facilitating access for the academic community, policymakers and the general public to one of the most significant international analyses of the state of democracy.
The 2026 edition includes a new chapter dedicated to Portugal, authored by Tiago Fernandes (CEI-Iscte) and Sara Pina (Lusófona University), which analyses recent developments in Portuguese democracy using indicators from the V-Dem project. The study examines dimensions such as political polarisation, the quality of democratic deliberation and the dynamics of civic mobilisation in support of or against democratic principles.
The findings point to significant changes in the national political context over the past decade. The authors identify increasing levels of political polarisation and a decline in the deliberative quality of public debate. At the same time, the data reveal an intensification of pro-autocratic mobilisation, accompanied by significant growth in mobilisation initiatives in defence of democracy.
The Democracy Report 2026 offers a comprehensive perspective on the challenges currently facing democracies in different regions of the world, bringing together contributions from V-Dem Institute researchers and experts associated with its international network.
About the Democracy Report 2026
The Democracy Report 2026 is authored by Marina Nord, David Altman, Tiago Fernandes, Ana Good God and Staffan I. Lindberg. The report provides a global assessment of the state of democracy, drawing on the V-Dem database, currently one of the most extensive sources of comparative information on political regimes and democratic quality.
Download: Democracy Report 2026: Unravelling the Democratic Era?
Originally published at: https://cei.iscte-iul.pt/2026/08/nova-edicao-portuguesa-do-relatorio-da-democracia-2026-ja-esta-disponivel/