Democracy Decoded

How did American democracy reach such a precarious moment — and what can we do to fix things? Host Simone Leeper examines the fundamental threats to our democracy today, from gerrymandering and corrup...

4 Sep 20252min

Donald Trump took office as president on January 20, 2025, having already served one term. Immediately, however, he made clear his second term would be even more unpredictable than his first. He put o...

30 Apr 202542min

In the end, the worst of everyone’s election fears — political violence, overt foreign interference or a razor-thin margin between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump leading to a hotly contested legal bat...

12 Nov 202430min

This week’s episode is short, sweet, and to the point: It’s Election Day, and if you haven’t yet cast your vote, let us be your friendly reminder. Like many of her CLC colleagues, Simone will spend th...

5 Nov 20242min

An incumbent president drops out, mid-race. A former president becomes a party’s nominee for the first time in more than a century. There are multiple occurrences of political violence against a candi...

29 Okt 202432min

Imagine you’re at home when you hear a knock. At your door are people who want you to share, in detail, who you voted for in the last election, months ago. When you ask them who they are and where the...

22 Okt 202427min

When New Hampshire voters picked up the phone earlier this year and heard what sounded like the voice of President Joe Biden asking them not to vote in that state’s primary election, the stage was set...

15 Okt 202432min

Election certification has traditionally been a mostly symbolic process in the United States. You vote, your vote gets counted, your precinct and others get tallied together (“canvassed” is the term o...

8 Okt 202430min