Joseph Siegle

Joseph Siegle’s research focuses on the security and economic implications of democratic and authoritarian governance. Topics he writes on include African elections, the destabilizing legacies of military governments, stabilizing fragile states, mitigating threats from violent extremist groups in Africa, Russian influence in Africa, geopolitics and countering authoritarian narratives, upholding a rules-based international order and strengthening institutions of democratic accountability. Illustrative publications include “Standing Up to Africa’s Juntas” (Journal of Democracy), “Winning the Battle of Ideas: Exposing Global Authoritarian Narratives and Revitalizing Democratic Principles,” (National Endowment for Democracy), “Presidential Term Limits Key to Democratic Progress and Security in Africa” (Orbis), “Putin’s World Order Would Be Devastating for Africa” (Foreign Policy), “Overcoming Dilemmas of Democratization: Protecting Civil Liberties and the Right to Democracy” (Nordic Journal of International Law) and The Democracy Advantage: How Democracies Promote Prosperity and Peace (Routledge). He is also a regular media analyst.

Siegle is also the Director for Research at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C. In this capacity, he oversees the Center’s research on Africa-wide governance and security trends. Siegle has held previous research fellow positions at the Council on Foreign Relations and the international consulting firm, DAI. For over a decade, he served as a development practitioner in conflict-affected contexts across Africa, Asia and the Balkans with the international NGO, World Vision. He was also a Peace Corps Volunteer in Liberia. Siegle is a proud alumni of the University of Maryland School of Public Policy.