The European Union’s Democratic Turn
By Matteo Bonelli. The “constitutional backsliding” crisis in the European Union started almost fifteen years ago. Since then, EU institutions have sought to address and reverse backsliding processes in the Member States with a variety of tools, initiatives and strategies. This article argues that we are witnessing a “democratic turn” in EU initiatives to protect and promote EU values. This democratic turn complements, but does not replace, the initiatives developed in the last decade to strengthen the rule of law in the EU and the Member States, as well as the Union’s fundamental rights policy that has even earlier roots.
