An Open Letter in Defense of Democracy

This open letter is being published simultaneously by The New Republic and The Bulwark.We are writers, academics, and political activists who have long disagreed about many things.Some of us are Democrats and others Republicans. Some identify with the left, some with the right, and some with neither. We have disagreed in the past, and we hope to be able to disagree, productively, for years to come. Because we believe in the pluralism that is at the heart of democracy.But right now we agree on a fundamental point: We need to join together to defend liberal democracy. Because liberal democracy itself is in serious danger. Liberal democracy depends on free and fair elections, respect for the rights of others, the rule of law, a commitment to truth and tolerance in our public discourse. All of these are now in serious danger.The primary source of this danger is one of our two major national parties, the Republican Party, which remains under the sway of Donald Trump and Trumpist authoritarianism. Unimpeded by Trump’s defeat in 2020, and unfazed by the January 6 insurrection, Trump and his supporters actively work to exploit anxieties and prejudices, to promote reckless hostility to the truth and to Americans who disagree with them, and to discredit the very practice of free and fair elections in which winners and losers respect the peaceful transfer of power.So we, who have differed on so much in the past—and who continue to differ on much today—have come together to say:We vigorously oppose ongoing Republican efforts to change state election laws to limit voter participation.We vigorously oppose ongoing Republican efforts to empower state legislatures to override duly appointed election officials and interfere with the proper certification of election results, thereby substituting their own political preferences for those expressed by citizens at the polls.We vigorously oppose the relentless and unending promotion of unprofessional and phony “election audits” that waste public money, jeopardize public electoral data and voting machines, and generate paranoia about the legitimacy of elections.We urge the Democratic-controlled Congress to pass effective, national legislation to protect the vote and our elections, and if necessary to override the Senate filibuster rule.And we urge all responsible citizens who care about democracy—public officials, journalists, educators, activists, ordinary citizens—to make the defense of democracy an urgent priority now.Now is the time for leaders in all walks of life—for citizens of all political backgrounds and persuasions—to come to the aid of the Republic.Todd GitlinProfessor of journalism, sociology and communications, Columbia UniversityJeffrey C. IsaacJames H. Rudy professor of political science, Indiana University, BloomingtonWilliam KristolEditor at large, The BulwarkDirector, Defending Democracy Together     Cosigners Affiliations listed for identification purposes only. Sheri BermanProfessor of political science, Barnard CollegeMax BootSenior fellow, Council on Foreign RelationsJames CarrollWriterLeo CaseyAssistant to the president, American Federation of TeachersMona CharenPolicy editor, The BulwarkNoam ChomskyInstitute professor and professor of linguistics emeritus, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Jelani CobbProfessor of journalism, Columbia UniversityEliot A. CohenRobert E. Osgood professor, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International StudiesDavid ColeNational legal director, American Civil Liberties UnionLaura K. FieldSenior fellow, Niskanen CenterCarolyn ForchéUniversity professor, Georgetown UniversityFrancis FukuyamaOlivier Nomellini senior fellow, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University William A. GalstonSenior fellow, the Brookings InstitutionJeffrey C. Goldfarb Michael E. Gellert professor emeritus, New School for Social ResearchHahrie HahnStavros Niarchos Foundation professor of political science, Johns Hopkins UniversityDirector, SNF Agora InstituteRoya HakakianWriterJohn JudisWriterIra KatznelsonRuggles professor of political science and history, Columbia UniversityMichael KazinProfessor of history, Georgetown UniversityRandall KennedyMichael R. Klein professor of law, Harvard UniversitySteven R. LevitskyProfessor of government, Harvard UniversityRobert Jay Lifton, M.D.Psychiatrist and authorSusie LinfieldProfessor of journalism, New York UniversityDamon LinkerSenior correspondent, The WeekDahlia LithwickSenior editor, SlateJane MansbridgeCharles F. Adams professor, emerita, Harvard Kennedy SchoolWin McCormackEditor in chief, The New RepublicJohn McWhorterProfessor of linguistics, Columbia UniversityDeborah MeierEducatorJames MillerProfessor of politics and liberal studies, New School for Social ResearchNell Irvin PainterEdwards professor of American history emerita, Princeton UniversityRick PerlsteinWriterKatha PollittWriterClaire PotterProfessor of history, New School for Social ResearchJedediah PurdyWilliam S Beinecke professor of law, Columbia UniversityJonathan RauchSenior fellow, the Brookings InstitutionAdolph ReedEmeritus professor of political science, University of PennsylvaniaKim Lane ScheppeleLaurance S. Rockefeller professor of sociology and international affairs, Princeton UniversityCharles SykesFounder and editor at large, The BulwarkGeorge ThomasBurnet C. Wohlford professor of American political institutions, Claremont McKenna CollegeMichael TomaskyEditor, The New RepublicEditor, Democracy: A Journal of IdeasJeffrey K. TulisProfessor of government and law, University of TexasJoan WalshWriter, The NationMichael WalzerProfessor emeritus of social science, Institute for Advanced StudyDorian T. WarrenPresident, Community ChangeSean WilentzSidney and Ruth Lapidus professor of history in the American revolutionary era, Princeton UniversityBenjamin WittesSenior fellow, the Brookings Institution