SOVEREIGNTY, DEMOCRACY, AND THE EUROPEAN

As a supranational organization—in which states transfer portions of their sovereign decision-making powers to the organization as a higher authority—the European Union is unique. The impact of this extraordinary organization on the ability of individual member-states to achieve promised goals of prosperity and peace is often the primary focus of analyses. But there is another important question: Is the European Union good or bad for democracy in individual states? This course examines the impact of the European Union on the politics of prospective, actual, and former member-states. The benefits and constraints of EU membership--indeed, even the prospect of membership--were expected to foster and shore up democracy, but the relationships here may turn out to be much more complex than imagined. In fact, since political backlash can result in states leaving the EU this is an urgent question for the future of the EU itself.

As a class we will explore the political impact of the EU—its accession processes, its policies, its institutional incentives, the constraints it creates--on member states. After introducing key concepts and acquiring and confirming a shared understanding of the EU itself (no previous background knowledge is required), we’ll look at how the prospect and the reality of joining the EU may affect political incentives and outcomes within individual states. We then switch gears and focus on Brexit, the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union, considering both its causes in British politics and its consequences for British democracy. Next we examine conflicts between the EU and individual member-states, most notably Hungary and Poland, over the rule of law. Our meetings on these topics will use both lecture and discussion. In the final weeks’ simulation you will make use of all you have learned as you play the role of a political actor from a particular member state in negotiations over revisions to the Treaty of Lisbon.