AP Photo/Cliff Owen Supporters hold signs in support of Democrat Phil Murphy, who was elected governor of New Jersey on November 7 democracy_rules.jpg I t would be easy to conclude one year after Donald Trump’s election that American democracy is in shambles. Trump’s assaults on press freedoms, judicial independence, and democratic norms are unprecedented in an American president. His administration has set the tone for self-dealing and ethics violations at the highest levels of government. And the U.S. has abandoned its traditional leadership role promoting accountability, transparency, and liberal governance internationally, just when democracy is on the wane around the world. Yet for all that, the one-year anniversary of Trump’s election has also shed light on the resilience of American democratic institutions and civic life, and on some silver linings. The nation’s democracy stress test has galvanized a wave of activists and candidates to enter the public square for the first time...

Anthony Behar/Sipa via AP Images A man walks past voting booths as New Yorkers cast ballots at Newton High School in Queens, New York democracy_rules.jpg T he debate over the Russian election interference and American election security is a case study in the utter dysfunctionality of Beltway politics. By contrast, a number of states have already embarked on practical, problem-solving innovations in securing the ballot in future elections. On the national stage, President Trump’s “election integrity” commission has careened from one controversy to another, taking steps that actually threaten to undermine ballot security. Outside the spotlight, state election officials are quietly taking steps to respond to the Russian threat and upgrade American election systems with better machines, more accurate voter rolls, and firewalls against hacking. The state-level picture is not all rosy, of course, and plenty of Republican statehouses have moved in the wrong direction with ill-advised voting...