Table 1.

Glossary box for some concepts

Concept	Can be defined as
Democratic institutions	Used here as a general term to describe the institutions that constitute democracy. Can be understood as the rules and processes (i.e. institutions) that are shaping how formal political power is accessed and distributed in a regime.
Governance	The government’s ability to make and enforce rules, and to deliver services.
Political rights	A set of institutions that distribute the opportunity and freedom for citizens to organize collectively and for the media to operate freely Example: civil society organisations are free to operate, governmental harassments of journalists.
Vertical accountability	A set of institutions that enable citizens to elect political leaders and hold them accountable through electoral means. Example: elected leaders, multiparty electoral competition.
Political constraints	A set of institutions that limits the discretion of elected leaders. Example: autonomous judiciary, a constitution.
Public good	A good that is hard to exclude people from consuming (i.e. non-excludable), and that the availability of this good does not decrease with increasing consumption of it (i.e. non-subtractable). Example: healthy and stable ecosystems.