The main democratic challenges raised by the COVID-19 crisis can be divided into three groups, according to a time sequence: There are challenges raised before, during, and after the crisis. These different moments in time correspond to questions of understanding, deciding, and learning. The first set of questions concern whether or not we were prepared for a crisis on this scale, and whether we have been able to understand it correctly. At the heart of the crisis, what was in play was our ability to decide and to do so without damaging the values of justice and democracy. After the crisis, the most significant question is what needs to be learned, by whom, and in what way.