People look at the European Union and complain that it is not like a nation state. The EU is slow-moving, indecisive, and lacking in conviction. Look at the weakness of the EU’s response to the atrocities in Gaza, its ineffectiveness in standing up to the United States, and its inability to replace American support for Ukraine. Even the EU’s commitment to climate action appears to be wavering.

Such complaints ignore that the EU is not like a nation state for good reason. The European project exists to temper the behaviour of nation states. It is designed to smooth over the contradictions in liberal democracy and, in doing so, make those democracies both more resilient and more legitimate. And the EU is unique. Only Europeans benefit from that political innovation. The United States does not. Neither does Brazil, Russia, India, China, or South Africa.

Consider the advantages the EU brings. When a government comes to power in an EU member state with the goal of shutting down their opposition, the EU tries to rein them in. This arrangement is not perfect. Would-be autocrats claim to act with a popular mandate. The EU cannot ignore those claims, but it can push back rhetorically and by creating incentives to respect democratic norms.

This rhetorical and incentive-based arrangement may not seem like much, but what is the better alternative? The history of U.S. foreign policy shows the failure of democracy promotion via regime change. By contrast, the EU’s enlargement policy is an overwhelming success. Yes, there are governments in the hands of leaders who appear to have little respect for democracy, but they are relatively fewer in number and their hold over power is weaker than would otherwise be the case. That is why pro-democracy governments in Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans are so eager to join.

Now think about how the EU helps national governments work together despite disagreements over policy, money, or identity. When the euro area divided between North and South during the sovereign debt crisis, the EU managed to keep it from imploding. When the European economy, still reeling from the crisis, was hit with the pandemic, the EU arranged for governments to work together rather than against one another. Again, such cooperation has not been perfect, but it has strengthened European democracy. It has also strengthened the incentives the EU has to offer in making European democracy more resilient.

Can the EU work better? Yes, but it will do so by working alongside and through member states to make their political and economic institutions more flexible, inclusive, and responsive. That is the plan. And it is a better plan than exists elsewhere. Here again it may be worth looking to the United States. The EU makes it possible for innovations in politics to be progressive and not just defensive. European democracy faces threats and challenges, but the EU gives Europeans a support structure that makes it possible to have greater hope in what they can accomplish.

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This essay was written as part of the celebration of ‘Innovation in Politics‘ for 2025. I am very grateful to the organizers at the ‘European Capital of Democracy‘ for inviting me to join that celebration in Vienna on 17 September 2025. You can find out more about the award winners here.