How to Choose a Leader: Machiavelli’s Advice to Citizens

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By Maurizio Viroli

Published May 20, 2016

Maurizio Viroli, an acclaimed Machiavelli biographer, interprets Niccolò Machiavelli’s writings to see what can be learned about choosing a leader. Viroli is professor emeritus of politics at Princeton University and a current professor at the University of Texas, Austin and the University of Italian Switzerland in Lugano. His previous works include Niccolò’s Smile and Redeeming 'The Prince.'

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PAW's July/August 2025 issue cover, featuring a photo of people dressed in orange and black, marching in the P-rade, and the headline: Reunions, Back in Orange & Black.
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July 2025

On the cover: Wilton Virgo ’00 and his classmates celebrate during the P-rade.