Introduction: Democratic Challenges of Differentiated (Dis)Integration

Abstract

In this introduction, we set out what we consider the main current democratic challenges in the EU and, by extension, of differentiated (dis)integration (DI). The EU needs to strike a difficult balance between being an association of states and a supranational polity. As a result, it finds itself in a continuous search for an institutional design that may count as fully democratic. Finally, the EU increasingly suffers from populist and even autocratic challenges. While DI can contribute to some of these problems, it also carries the promise of constructive solutions. We highlight some of the special issue’s key insights with regard to the complex relation between democracy and DI.