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The one thing that actually stops would-be dictators

Ellsworth Toohey
Feb 27, 2026
∙ Paid

Presidential mugshot

What actually stops a would-be dictator? Political science research points to a single factor above all others: whether enough people can see the threat for what it is.

That’s the central argument from Zack Beauchamp, who researched democratic resilience at Penn’s Perry World House. In a piece for Vox, he argues that authoritarian pro…

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