Donald Trump may run, and win, in 2024. Canada must prepare now to protect global democracy

Given its likelihood, imagine what a second Trump presidency would look like.

6 and resulted in the country’s demotion from “full democracy” to a “flawed democracy” on the annual global ranking of democratic governance.

A second Trump term would make Canada more vulnerable than ever before.

Canada should dispatch senior ministers to Europe and across Africa, Asia and the Americas to speak discreetly but bluntly with allies and create a united front when our shared commitments come under threat.

The world’s democracies need a new forum because the ones that exist now are not structured to meet the unprecedented threat that Trump redux would present.

Neither the United Nations nor its predecessor, the League of Nations, was created to protect democracy.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is proudly committed to promoting democratic values, but it is oriented primarily toward mutual military defence, and its influence is limited by its narrow regional scope in Europe and North America.

This new global coalition could play a unique role in promoting and protecting democracy.

Admission to this coalition would require signatories to endorse a declaration of democratic values and pledge to stand together against any threat to democracy.

Members would work together to pursue objectives closely related to democratic governance, including defending human rights and the dignity of all persons, resisting autocrats, countering misinformation and disinformation, advancing the rule of law, supporting democratic movements and strengthening multilateral organizations committed to shared values.

The overarching goal would be to create a world that rejects authoritarianism, thwarts its ability to grow and replicate and denies it air to breathe.

On a more practical level, the coalition could support and share research into best practices in democratic governance, including strategies to counter threats to free and fair elections and policy innovations to confront growing economic inequality, among other challenges.

Defenders of democracy around the world might differ on its details, but no one can doubt that democratic decline is an urgent problem for us all.