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According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, the world is in the midst of a “democratic recession,” and America’s recent downgrade to “flawed democracy” showed that countries with long traditions of democracy are not immune. Canada weathered the 2008 economic recession better than many countries, but can we weather the world’s democratic recession? To do so, we need a strong democratic infrastructure: the mix of laws and institutions, as well as the unwritten political norms and culture that allow us to work together as citizens to make decisions.

Samara Canada’s 2017 Democracy 360, the second report card on how Canadians communicate, participate and lead in politics, shows most Canadians believe their democracy to be doing … meh, okay. Overall, Canadians gave their democracy a “B-” grade, up from a “C” two years ago.

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The greatest danger to Canada’s democracy may not come from instability abroad, but our own complacency. We cannot be over-confident that the country’s democratic infrastructure, much of it dating back to Confederation itself, needn’t be reinforced and renewed. Moreover, a country as rich in resources and people as Canada should strive for “exceeds expectations” rather than “meets expectations.” The Democracy 360 report demonstrates there is room to improve.