Democracy and Legitimacy Lecture Explores the Deeper Roots of Contemporary U.S. Political Dynamics
The European Law and Governance School (ELGS) hosted a lecture on the structural and ideological factors shaping contemporary U.S. politics, delivered by Associate Professor Chrysanthos D. Tassis and moderated by Dr. Anastasia Marinopoulou, ELGS Resident Lecturer. The session was also accessible online.
The lecture examined the political and social conditions that have contributed to the electoral trajectory of President Donald Trump. Professor Tassis noted that Trump is only the second U.S. president in history to lose re‑election and subsequently regain significant political momentum, underscoring the need to understand the broader historical and structural context behind this phenomenon.
The lecture highlighted the continuity of political narratives in U.S. history. Professor Tassis highlighted how elements of Trump’s platform draw on earlier currents in American political life—from the “Make America Great Again” framing and the legacy of Ronald Reagan, to the “America First” tradition that can be traced back to the early 20th century, including the era of Woodrow Wilson.
The lecture also explored the evolving coalitions within U.S. society that have shaped recent electoral outcomes. According to Professor Tassis, shifts within both major political parties, combined with deeper changes in the U.S. economy, democratic institutions, and social structures, have contributed to the formation of a broad alliance of groups supporting Trump. This coalition includes Evangelical Christians, segments of the urban technology sector, military veterans, parts of the white working class in the Rust Belt, and rural communities.
Professor Tassis drew on his extensive academic background in political sociology and U.S. political thought. He is Associate Professor at the Department of Social Policy at Democritus University of Thrace, a graduate of the Study of the U.S. Institute for Scholars (SUSI) on American Politics and Political Thought at the University of Massachusetts, and a former Visiting Scholar at Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania.
The event contributed to the ELGS’s ongoing commitment to fostering informed, comparative discussions on democracy, legitimacy, and political change in different regions of the world.
