This is a ghastly moment to lead a liberal democracy.

From Australia to Britain, France, Germany and beyond, centre-left and centre-right incumbents are breaking records for voter disapproval. 

At the same time, this despised cohort is confronted with huge problems that could, if left unsolved, lead to catastrophe.

Populists have long promised simple solutions to voters’ grievances, whether that involves hard-right pledges to send unwanted foreigners packing, or leftist slogans about taxing billionaires. 

Some centrists try to rival populists in their alarmism. To overcome public inertia and rally voters behind expensive policies, they say that catastrophes are at hand. 

They declare that the world is in a “climate emergency”, or that Russia may attack Europe’s eastern flank in “months”

The Economist 26 May 2026

https://www.economist.com/international/2026/05/26/centrists-crying-wolf


Martin Wolf: a necessary condition for political stability in a liberal democracy 

https://englundmacro.blogspot.com/2026/05/martin-wolf-necessary-condition-for.html



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