Over the past two decades, the world has experienced a wave of democratic backsliding. Elected incumbents have used their power to dismantle democracy over time, often by capturing State organs and reducing checks and balances. Yet, in recent years, pro-democratic actors managed to regain governmental power in multiple States. Nonetheless, these newly elected pro-democratic governments still face considerable challenges: They are tasked with restoring the independence of captured State organs while authoritarian forces push back against any reform.
During this process, international law can play an important role. In response to democratic backsliding, international organisations and their bodies have developed new international legal standards concerning the institutional structure of States. International courts adjudicated on the independence of the judiciary, election management bodies and even national parliaments. Furthermore, international bodies also provided guidance on how the independence of State organs must be restored. These new international legal standards can facilitate the restoration of democracy because they provide legal resources to pro-democratic national actors. At the same time, international law also serves as an important constraint since national actors must adhere to their international legal obligations when restoring independent State organs.
The dissertation will analyse the international legal obligations that govern the restoration of independent State organs by national actors. For its analysis, it will focus on two exemplary State organs that are regularly captured by autocrats: the judiciary and election management bodies. To represent the important role of regions in protecting democracy, the dissertation will research the legal standards under universal and European regional international law. Thereby, it aims to generate a better understanding of the international legal framework that governs the restoration of independent State organs by national actors after episodes of democratic backsliding.
