No Neutral Ground examines the complexities of promoting democracy after civil wars, focusing on the role of domestic non-governmental organizations (NGOs). While peace and democracy promoting NGOs are expected to be impartial in their activities, in the aftermath of violence, citizens may distrust these organizations and perceive them as exclusionary, detracting from their effectiveness. The book explores how post-war polarization shapes the interactions among citizens, NGO leaders, and governments, influencing citizen attitudes toward democracy promotion. Each actor is shaped by the destabilizing effects of war, resulting in unintended consequences. Drawing on extensive original data collected through years of fieldwork in Côte d'Ivoire, encompassing interviews, participant observation, focus groups, surveys, experiments, and lab-in-the-field games, No Neutral Ground reassesses the theory and practice of post-conflict democratization and offers insights into whether and how wartime legacies might be overcome to achieve democracy.

‘Justine Davis's No Neutral Ground puts the role of local democracy-promotion NGOs under the microscope. In highly charged political contexts, politicization of the NGOs themselves, NGO leaders' identities, and their alignment with the regime (or not) mean that oftentimes, there really is ‘no neutral ground’ from which to rebuild trust in elections. Davis's careful and politically sensitive analysis shows us that for local civil society associations and the publics they engage, both hope and mistrust shape the complex tasks of rebuilding community, state and nation.’Catherine Boone, London School of Economics

‘Can NGOs truly be 'neutral' in a landscape scarred by civil war? Davis powerfully argues that they cannot. Incorporating a 'lab-in-the-field' approach, she demonstrates how wartime governance leaves a legacy of parochial altruism and perceived partisanship that can alienate the very citizens democracy promotion intends to engage. No Neutral Ground is a sophisticated, sobering, and essential analysis of the limits of civil society in polarized settings.’Susan Hyde, University of California, Berkeley

‘In this scintillating book, Davis helps us better understand why democracy does not always easily take root in post-conflict settings. Through deep fieldwork and a mixed methods approach, Davis shows us how, even under power-sharing institutions, wartime divisions can impede democracy promotion by coloring the interaction of citizens with NGOs, and NGOs with citizens. Davis brilliantly brings the behavior and motivation of NGO leaders to the fore.’Gwyneth McClendon, New York University

‘No Neutral Ground is a landmark study of post-civil war democracy in Africa. Justine Davis elegantly highlights a critical flaw in the international community’s approach to supporting democracy after civil war. The actors entrusted with building democratic culture-NGO leaders, citizens, and governments-are profoundly reshaped by conflict, undermining their mission. Davis's fieldwork is extraordinary in its depth methodological pluralism, combining behavioral games, survey experiments, qualitative interviews, and cross-national data. As a theorist of ‘warlord democracy’, I find the book both essential and policy relevant. This study demonstrates that this type of democracy can only emerge from elite bargaining and peace agreements, not from a gradual evolution of political norms that promote inclusion and tolerance at the grassroots level. It serves as essential reading for scholars, practitioners, and policymakers alike.’Leonard Wantchekon, Princeton University