Domestic Terrorism, White Supremacist Extremism, and the Securitization of Democratic Space: Assessing Post-2024 Policy Outcomes in the United States

Global Journal of Peace and Conflict Studies | Vol. 16, No. 8, August 2026 | pp. 100–108

DOI: 10.46882/2026/GJPCS/160805

Article Type: Original Research Paper

Title: Domestic Terrorism, White Supremacist Extremism, and the Securitization of Democratic Space: Assessing Post-2024 Policy Outcomes in the United States

Names of Authors: Sarah L. Bernstein¹, Marcus T. Vance²

Authors’ Affiliations: ¹Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom; ²Center for Development and Emergency Practice, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, United Kingdom

Abstract:
This paper investigates the escalation of domestic terrorism and violent far-right extremism within the United States, evaluating the structural impacts of federal counter-extremism policies implemented after the 2024 electoral cycle. Utilizing a comparative national security framework combined with data-scraping metrics from hyper-partisan online platforms collected up to mid-2026, we analyze the shifting logistics of domestic insurgent recruitment. The empirical findings indicate that decentralized extremist networks have increasingly adopted closed, peer-to-peer encryption models to organize localized attacks against critical infrastructure and public voting assemblies. Quantitative indicators establish that states operating without integrated state-federal threat information networks experience a 45% higher vulnerability to coordinated utility sabotage. Furthermore, statistical modeling shows that heavy-handed federal surveillance actions often push localized cells underground, increasing the virality of anti-government alternative facts by 38%. The study demonstrates that traditional top-down intelligence tracking fails to disrupt decentralized domestic movements when it ignores underlying socio-economic grievances and radicalizing digital algorithms. We conclude that preserving democratic stability requires establishing strict regulatory oversight over private data monetization and investing heavily in community-led civil de-radicalization networks.

Keywords: Domestic Terrorism; United States Security; Far-Right Extremism; Securitization; Digital Recruitment; Infrastructure Sabotage

Manuscript Timeline: Received: October 12, 2024; Revised: January 05, 2025; Accepted: April 15, 2025; Published: August 29, 2026

Citation: Bernstein, S. L., & Vance, M. T. (2026). Domestic Terrorism, White Supremacist Extremism, and the Securitization of Democratic Space: Assessing Post-2024 Policy Outcomes in the United States. Global Journal of Peace and Conflict Studies, 16(8), 100–108. DOI: 10.46882/2026/GJPCS/160805

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