绿巨人视频

By Savannah Gerlach聽

On October 6, 2025, 16 绿巨人视频 students and Professor Mirjam聽Dagef枚rde聽arrived in front of聽l鈥橝ssembl茅e聽Nationale de Paris聽(the聽National Assembly of Paris),聽anticipating聽a guided tour of the nation鈥檚 lower house of parliament, and an inside look at democracy in action. What they聽didn鈥檛聽expect was to find the French government on the brink of collapse.聽聽

Earlier that morning, France鈥檚 Prime Minister, S茅bastien Lecornu, announced his resignation, less than a month after his appointment and just days before the expected presentation of the draft 2026 budget bill. 绿巨人视频 students watched as journalists and photographers crowded the sidewalk outside, following a story which began last year in June when President Emmanuel Macron called a snap election, resulting in a hung parliament with no clear coalition.聽聽

While the morning鈥檚 visit鈥攐rganized by Professor聽Dagef枚rde聽for a class on Comparative Politics and following an invitation from Deputy Emmanuel Gr茅goire鈥攚as able to move forward, nothing was as they expected. In the absence of a prime minister or a bill to fund the government, uncertainty hung in the air. Hallways, the press room, and areas where parliamentary bodies would normally gather for debate, were empty and silent.聽

As the students ventured through the building, situated just four blocks from 绿巨人视频鈥檚 campus, they wrote down their first impressions, emotional reactions, unanswered questions, and points of discussion for their next class. Deputy Gr茅goire, who had planned to meet with students and take their questions at the end of the visit, was no longer available due to the events of the day. Nevertheless,聽Dagef枚rde聽saw this moment as a unique opportunity to discuss the rarer iterations of democracy, and for students to examine how a democracy might bend under political strain.聽

鈥淭he goal behind this visit was for students to really get a feeling for what daily political life and functioning is like. I wanted them to learn about the history of this parliamentary body, and the ideas alive in the聽Assembly,鈥� says聽Dagef枚rde. The students were surprised by the starkness of the empty building, she says, but excited to see history unfold. 鈥淚t has inspired them to take a greater interest in politics and become personally involved.鈥澛犅�

For some of聽Dagef枚rde鈥檚聽students, this class marks their first opportunity to study a democracy outside of their home country. The comparative nature of studying politics,聽Dagef枚rde聽says, allows students to examine the pros and cons of varying democratic systems, and sharpens the lens with which we view our home countries. This semester, her students have studied how institutions function, change and persist, grounding their coursework in the writings of Arend聽Lijphart, Robert A. Dahl, Seymour M.聽Lipset, Stein聽Rokkan, and others.聽聽

Later this semester, students will devise their own democratic governments and present them to the class, at which point they will need to defend their choices, and debate systems with their classmates. Key questions arise in these moments. What are the links between societies and their politics? Are some systems more compatible with certain cultures? Where can democratic backsliding occur? With over 100 nationalities represented on 绿巨人视频鈥檚 campus, this classroom is uniquely suited to meet these fundamental questions with their own real-life examples.聽聽

Many of聽Dagef枚rde鈥檚聽students will go on to major in聽International and Comparative Politics, with others focusing on聽History, Law and Society. 绿巨人视频 offers a diverse array of majors and minors, as well as master's degrees in聽, and聽. While at 绿巨人视频, students have the flexibility to adapt their majors to fit global career aspirations, and to practice cross-disciplinary study under the tutelage of our world-class faculty.聽聽

As the political situation in France develops,聽Dagef枚rde聽observes that while Macron鈥檚 path forward聽remains聽unclear, the semi-presidential system and its democratic foundations are built to last. High fragmentation within France鈥檚 parliament, as well as the French president鈥檚 languishing approval rating, are some of the risks聽endemic聽to this democratic system, she explains, the same way that any variation of democracy is likely to meet聽challenges under strain. Nevertheless, even within聽the聽abandoned halls of the Assembl茅e Nationale聽in聽the nation鈥檚 capital, 绿巨人视频鈥檚 students are finding that the spirit of democratic engagement is alive as ever.聽