Not that long ago (approximately 30 years), democracy was thought to be the “wave of the future”. The Berlin Wall had fallen, communism had collapsed and democracy appeared to have triumphed. Less developed and formerly communist countries were attempting to create constitutional democracies, and established democracies in Europe and North America were all considered to be extremely stable.

Today, this “democratic wave” appears to have crested and it may be retreating. In recent elections authoritarian populist parties have increased their share of the vote in Italy, Austria, France, Germany and even Sweden.

Looking beyond Western Europe, newer democracies are threatened. Authoritarian populist parties are now in control of Hungary, Poland, and more extreme authoritarians now govern Russia, Turkey, and the Philippines.

Most of these authoritarian parties are very popular with large segments of their populations. Their leaders even claim to be acting in defense of democracy, not in opposition to democracy. More troubling still is that, China a country that has never even pretended be democratic, is now viewed by many people as having created an authoritarian political and economic model that works better than constitutional democracy.

What then is authoritarian populism? Authoritarian populist leaders claim to be defending the average person against entrenched political and economic elites. They claim that agents of the “deep state” are frustrating enactment of the will of the people. They identify scapegoats (often illegal immigrants) as a major reason for their country’s problems. They claim that they, and they alone, can solve their nation’s problems with “simple common sense” solutions. They present themselves as the “true defenders” of democracy. They claim to be the only representatives of the “real” people of their country.

In order to better understand how authoritarian populism threatens democracy we need only think back on what we learned in our middle school government classes. Democracy has two parts. The first part is easy to understand. A constitutional democracy, in its republican form, involves popularly elected officials who carry out the will of the people who elected them. The second part of the definition of democracy is a bit more complex. That is, for a republican democracy to survive, elected leaders need to be constrained by constitutional requirements, the rule of law, separation of powers, civil liberties, freedom of the press, freedom of speech, an independent judiciary and so on.

So, how does this definition of democracy relate to the danger of authoritarian populism? Authoritarian populists tell their followers that they, as strong leaders, will override constitutional constraints and foil the plots of “shadowy agents of the deep state” that are frustrating the “true will” of the “real people”. Unfortunately, history teaches us that without constitutional constraints, authoritarian populist governments often degenerate into dictatorships.

Why then are populist authoritarian leaders gaining power in many parts of the world? Aspiring authoritarian leaders draw their “base support” from among average people who have serious grievances. Some of these grievances are legitimate while others are not. Adding to the confusion, not every one will agree on which of these grievances are legitimate.

Another part of the base of support for authoritarian populist leaders comes from traditional economic elites. These elites share many of the grievances of the average people, but the most important reason for their support for authoritarian populist leaders is that they think that these leaders will be most likely to enact the economic policies that these elites favor. These traditional economic elites also naively believe that they can manipulate populist leaders and control their worst behavior.

Up to this this point, I have avoided the use of the “F” word. I am referring, of course, to the word fascism. So, let me be clear. I am not saying that any current populist leader in Hungary, Poland, Russia Turkey, or even the US is a fascist.

Rather, I object to the tactics that many of these leaders are using. I find the constant bragging, the bullying, the demonizing of scapegoats, the use of repeated lies, the ugly nativists/racist dog-whistles, and the cheering crowds of supporters to be troublingly reminiscent of Italy and Germany prior to the time when fascists gained power.

Mark Twain is alleged to have said “History does not repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” What happened in Italy and Germany need not be repeated. Democracy is precious. Don’t let it slip away.

Editor’s note: Robert Kulisheck of Marquette is a professor emeritus in the Department of Political Science of Northern Michigan University.