Introduction: the decline of democracy and rise of populism in Europe and their effect on democracy promotion

International democracy promotion has been facing various challenges for a while. Among those are the decline of democracy and the rise of populism in donor countries. To date, however, there is little knowledge about their impact on democracy promotion. This article introduces a Special Issue that explores these challenges. After a general overview of the topic and consideration of the thematic focus of most contributions to the Special Issue, the introductory article elaborates in more detail on the relationship between populism and democracy promotion. Based on reviews of the debates about populism and democracy on the one hand and populism and foreign policy on the other hand, the article outlines three pathways through which populists may influence democracy promotion: (1) individual states, (2) international organizations and (3) civil society. In addition, the article summarizes the main findings of the contributions to the Special Issue and draws some general conclusions and perspectives for further research.