Schmidt Discusses Democratic Legitimacy in Coronavirus Crisis
Vivien Schmidt, Jean Monnet Professor of European Integration and Professor of International Relations and Political Science at the Fredrick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, participated in a virtual panel discussion on “Democratic Legitimacy and Public Debate in times of Pandemic” hosted the University of Copenhagen‘s Department of Sociology.
Schmidt’s remarks during the panel focused on democratic legitimacy during the COVID-19 pandemic and lessons that can be gleamed from the Eurozone crisis. Schmidt mentioned that the level of trust in governments throughout Europe in the time of coronavirus has largely been dependent on the country’s response to the virus and transparency. A diminishing level of trust can also be seen at the EU level as the EU Council is perceived to be doing very little, relegating COVID-19 responses to member countries.
The full panel can be viewed here.
Vivien A. Schmidt is Professor of International Relations and Jean Monnet Professor of European Integration at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies and was the first Director of BU’s Center for the Study of Europe, housed at the Pardee School. Her latest books include the forthcoming Europe’s Crisis of Legitimacy: Governing by Rules and Ruling by Numbers in the Eurozone (2019), Resilient Liberalism in Europe’s Political Economy (co-edited, 2013), Debating Political Identity and Legitimacy in the European Union (co-edited, 2011), Democracy in Europe (2006), and The Futures of European Capitalism (2002). She was recently named a Chevalier in the French Legion of Honor.