Minority Rule:
The Right-Wing Attack on the Will of the People—and the Fight to Resist It
A riveting account of the decades-long effort by reactionary white conservatives to undermine democracy and entrench their power—and the movement to stop them.
The mob that stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, represented an extreme form of the central danger facing American democracy today: a blatant disregard for the will of the majority. But this crisis didn’t begin or end with Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election. Through voter suppression, election subversion, gerrymandering, dark money, the takeover of the courts, and the whitewashing of history, reactionary white conservatives have strategically entrenched power in the face of a massive demographic and political shift. Ari Berman charts these efforts with sweeping historical research and incisive on-the-ground reporting, chronicling how a wide range of antidemocratic tactics interact with profound structural inequalities in institutions like the Electoral College, the Senate, and the Supreme Court to threaten the survival of representative government in America.
“The will of the people,” wrote Thomas Jefferson in 1801, “is the only legitimate foundation of any government.” But that foundation is crumbling. Some counter-majoritarian measures were deliberately built into the Constitution, which was designed in part to benefit a small propertied upper class, but they have metastasized to a degree that the Founding Fathers could never have anticipated, undermining the very notion of “a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.” Chilling and revelatory, Minority Rule exposes the long history of the conflict between white supremacy and multiracial democracy that has reached a fever pitch today—while also telling the inspiring story of resistance to these regressive efforts.
Praise For Minority Rule
“Great book alert: Understand how the Supreme Court actively undermines democracy and learn to spot the broader anti-democratic tactics that impact us at the national & local level. Get Ari Berman's timely, smart new book ‘Minority Rule.’ ” - Stacey Abrams, X
"Voting rights journalist Ari Berman has been detailing threats to our democracy for years, and his new book Minority Rule is a timely and essential read. He expertly shows how Republicans are trying to rig our political system—and shares how we can fight back."
—Hillary Clinton, X
“[A] "rich history of America’s undemocratic democracy. From an absurd Senate where California and Wyoming are equal, to Republican voter suppression, Ari Berman covers it all." - The Guardian
"[A] labyrinthine political exposé . . . Berman pairs wide-ranging and historically grounded analysis of America’s minoritarian political system with a trenchant critique of its departures from democratic common sense. The result is an eye-opening dissection of partisan manipulation." —Publishers Weekly
"A richly documented political book with significant current relevance." —Kirkus Reviews
"[A] deeply researched and deftly argued treatise . . . Berman rings a clarion call about the current state of political influence to shed light on the steady erosion of democratic norms." —Booklist
"Traces in methodical detail the long history of white conservatives deploying all kinds of technical maneuvers to counter the democratic effects of a diversifying country.." —The New York Times
"Anyone who cares about democracy should read his new book, Minority Rule. It’s terrific." —Jane Mayer, X
"If you want to learn more about how the Supreme Court is undermining our democracy, I highly recommend reading Ari Berman's timely new book Minority Rule. " —Robert Reich, X