Democracy Forum 1/16/26: Constitutional Crisis: Can Democracy Survive Billionaire Economics?

Host: Ann Luther, League of Women Voters of Maine
Production Assistance: Linda Washburn, Joel Mann

Democracy Forum: Participatory Democracy, encouraging citizens to take an active role in government and politics.

This month:
We’ll talk about how wealth and income inequality undermine democracy. Does extreme income inequality lead to right wing authoritarianism? How does that work? Is that playing out in the U.S. right now? In Maine?

Guest/s:
Garrett Martin, President & CEO, Maine Center for Economic Policy
Susan Stokes, the Tiffany and Margaret Blake Distinguished Service Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Chicago. She is the author of the new book, The Backsliders: Why Leaders Undermine Their Own Democracies | Princeton University Press, September 2025

To learn more about this topic:
Visit LWVME.org

About the host:
Ann Luther currently serves as Treasurer of the League of Women Voters of Maine and leads the LWVME Advocacy Team. She served as President of LWVME from 2003 to 2007 and as co-president from 2007-2009.