This chapter challenges the views that democracy has reached its high-water mark and is in long-term retreat. While it is unrealistic to assume that democratic institutions can be set up easily, the conditions conducive to democracy can and do change. The world as a whole is becoming richer and safer. This change is conducive to the rise of existential security and self-expression values, which contributes to the spread of democracy. Although the high-income countries are currently experiencing an Authoritarian Reflex, it is not because of objective scarcity (their economic resources are abundant and growing) but largely because of steeply rising economic inequality. If it were reversed, the long-term spread of democracy might resume. There is no need to panic about the fact that democracy is currently in retreat. The dynamics of modernization and democracy are becoming increasingly clear, and it is unlikely that they will fail to function in the long run.