Individual Factor Scores
-3-2-10+1+2
Key Developments
US Democracy Trends - February 9-15, 2026
Welcome to our weekly update on political accountability across the 39 key factors that shape the U.S. democratic system. This analysis draws from 2,210 articles across 15 news sources gathered during February 9-15, 2026, spanning the political spectrum and providing granular trend data to complement expert-rated indices like V-Dem, Freedom House, and Bright Line Watch.
Bottom Line Up Front
Of the 39 political accountability factors we track for the United States this week, 5 are showing progress, 20 are showing concern, and 14 remain stable. Our weekly data points to a week with notable concerning signals across multiple democratic dimensions, particularly around the government shutdown and related service delivery and the treatment of marginalized communities. Meanwhile, minor improvements were observed in judicial oversight, government transparency, and party organizational capacity ahead of the midterms. These dynamics suggest that expert assessments from V-Dem or Bright Line Watch, if captured today, would likely reflect significant institutional stress across the American democratic system.
Democracy Dashboard
Week of February 9–15, 2026
39 Factors • 13 Dimensions • 2,210 Articles Analyzed
39 Factors • 13 Dimensions • 2,210 Articles Analyzed
👆 Tap any colored dimension to explore details and key articles
5
Signaling Progress
20
Signaling Concern
14
Stable
Civic Participation
✅ Minor Progress (+2)
Mass grassroots mobilization against ICE operations — high school walkouts, 900+ Google worker petitions, nationwide whistle protests, and San Francisco's first teacher strike in nearly 50 years — demonstrates robust democratic participation. Civil society organizations actively held both government and corporations accountable.
Legal System
✅ Minor Progress (+1)
Federal courts actively enforced constitutional constraints across immigration enforcement, electoral data access, and religious freedom. Both Trump-appointed and Obama-appointed judges blocked administration overreach, demonstrating judicial independence across the political spectrum.
Modern Open Government
✅ Minor Progress (+1)
Bipartisan congressional access to unredacted Epstein files advanced transparency, with Rep. Khanna correcting misinformation about four men falsely implicated. Democrats also pushed for oversight of Venezuelan oil revenue being controlled outside regular appropriations and legal scrutiny.
Party Politics
✅ Minor Progress (+1)
Competitive primaries in Texas and New Jersey — including a Sanders/AOC-backed progressive upset over an establishment candidate — demonstrate active internal democratic processes and grassroots organizing capacity in both parties ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Electoral Processes
⚠️ Minor Concern (-2)
President Trump explicitly threatened voter ID requirements "whether approved by Congress or not," directly bypassing constitutional authority over elections. FBI operations in Fulton County, GA were based on debunked Stop the Steal claims, and a court blocked early voting sites at North Carolina universities — creating compounding threats to electoral integrity.
Executive Operations
⚠️ Minor Concern (-2)
DNI Gabbard's office blocked whistleblower briefings to Congress on a classified complaint involving foreign nationals discussing Jared Kushner. The DOJ moved to erase Bannon's contempt conviction, the Labor Department severed ties with the ABA, and Commerce Secretary Lutnick faced bipartisan resignation calls after confirming he visited Epstein's island.
Sovereign Relations
⚠️ Minor Concern (-2)
Federal immigration enforcement overrode state sanctuary laws across multiple jurisdictions — including deep-red Idaho — while foreign funding of U.S. advocacy groups and universities drew congressional scrutiny. Secretary Rubio's warmer tone at Munich offered some diplomatic reassurance, offset by ongoing structural restructuring of alliances.
Democratic Norms
⚠️ Minor Concern (-3)
Documented ICE detention conditions drew severe criticism. The administration removed the Pride flag from Stonewall National Monument. The presidential account shared racist imagery of the Obamas as apes with no disciplinary response. Trump disinvited Democratic governors from a purportedly bipartisan White House event.
Social Dynamics
⚠️ Minor Concern (-3)
Concurrent antisemitic incidents, LGBTQ+ symbolic exclusion, racial dehumanization from the presidential account, and transgender athlete debates all signal fragmentation of shared democratic norms. Partisan health funding cuts and California billionaires relocating to avoid wealth taxes deepened structural inequality.
Economic Ecosystem
⚠️ Minor Concern (-3)
EPA repealed its 2009 greenhouse gas endangerment finding — the legal basis for federal climate regulation — driven by political preference rather than new evidence. National economic security faces vulnerabilities from a China-linked SpaceX probe and stalled Iran talks. Liberal markets showed mixed signals: the House tariff repeal vote is largely symbolic with no practical effect as the tariffs remain in place.
Constitutional Balance of Power
🔸 Moderate Concern (-4)
The third partial government shutdown in recent months reflects severe appropriations dysfunction; Congress left for a 10-day recess with no resolution path. Executive Precedent worsened as Trump asserted authority over midterm elections, blocked an international bridge for trade leverage, and directed military energy purchases by executive order. Maxwell stonewalled the House Oversight Committee on Epstein.
Functional Governance
🔸 Moderate Concern (-5)
The DHS shutdown left 85% of FEMA staff unpaid and restricted the Coast Guard to life-threatening emergencies only, while TSA agents worked without pay nationwide. The EPA's repeal of its greenhouse gas finding dismantled the legal basis for federal climate regulation. Eighteen homeless individuals died in a NYC cold snap, exposing compounding municipal and federal crisis response failures.
Media Infrastructure
🔸 Moderate Concern (-5)
Don Lemon faces federal prosecution for covering an anti-ICE protest, with video evidence contradicting key charges. The FBI searched a Washington Post reporter's home under a gag order. The FBI's Fulton County raid was driven by debunked election denial claims. Trump's cumulative $65 billion in media lawsuits since 2024 creates broad chilling effects across broadcaster editorial independence.
Stable This Week
→ Stable (0)
Three dimensions showed offsetting signals with no net change: Intergovernmental Cooperation (warmer Munich Security Conference tone offset by alliance restructuring); Inter-Party Deliberation (bipartisan Epstein file cooperation offset by AG Bondi's combative hearing taunts); Civic Culture (Super Bowl and Olympics generated engagement but remained politically polarized). Eleven additional factors showed minimal newsworthy developments.
Another Government Shutdown
The government entered its third partial shutdown in recent months as Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding deliberations continued, with the likelihood of an extended shutdown as Congress heads out on a 10-day recess. In light of the stalemate in Congress, DHS shut down this week. Additionally, several thousands of federal workers are again left unpaid, many of whom are still working like those employed by the TSA. The shutdown also restricts entities such as FEMA and the Coast Guard to responding to “life-threatening emergencies” only. Meanwhile, the FBI unsealed the files taken from Fulton County, GA, Congress gained access to the unredacted Epstein files, the EPA revoked its own scientific finding on greenhouse gases, and a former CNN journalist faced prosecution for his role in anti-ICE protests at a church service.
Democracy Trends Network Analysis
Week of February 9–15, 2026 • Shutdown Stress & Institutional Resistance
