American democracy is at an inflection point. With voting rights challenged, election results undermined, and even the US Capitol violently attacked, many Americans feel powerless to save their nation’s democratic institutions from the forces dismantling them. Yet, as founders like Benjamin Franklin knew from the start, the health of America’s democracy depends on the actions its citizens are willing to take to preserve it. 
 
To Keep the Republic is a wake-up call about the responsibilities that come with being a citizen in a participatory democracy. It describes the many ways that individuals can make a difference on both local and national levels—and explains why they matter. Political scientist Elizabeth C. Matto highlights the multiple facets of democratic citizenship, identifies American democracy’s sometimes competing values and ideals, and explains how civic engagement can take various forms, including political conversation. Combining political philosophy with concrete suggestions for how to become a more engaged citizen, To Keep the Republic reminds us that democracy is not a spectator sport; it only works when we get off the sidelines and enter the political arena to make our voices heard.


 

ELIZABETH C. MATTO is a Research Professor and Director of Rutgers University’s Eagleton Institute of Politics. She was lead editor for Teaching Civic Engagement Across the Disciplines (2017) and Teaching Civic Engagement Globally (2021) and author of Citizen Now: Engaging in Politics and Democracy (2016).

CHRISTINE TODD WHITMAN was the 50th governor of the State of New Jersey. 

“The work of civic education is more important than ever, and Dr. Matto is one of the most respected scholars and voices in her field. A timely and valuable contribution, To Keep the Republic is poised to offer much useful experience and wisdom in an unprecedented period in American democracy.”— Elizabeth Beaumont, author of The Civic Constitution: Civic Visions and Struggles in the Path Toward Constitutional Demo

“To Keep the Republic is an idea-rich book about civic life that aims to inspire and guide action, not just explain history and government.”— Peter Levine, author of What Should We Do?: A Theory of Civic Life