Democratization and structured contingency in competitive. From party dominance to competitive authoritarianism. Competitive authoritarianism in africa revisited 7 1 3 competitive authoritarian regimes are regimes in which democratic institutions exist on paper, but are subverted by incumbents. Democratization and structured contingency in competitive authoritarian regimes a nested investigation steffen ovdal. One proposed method of determining whether a regime is an illiberal democracy is to determine whether it has regular, free, fair, and competitive elections to fill the principal positions of power in the country, but it does not qualify as free in freedom houses annual ratings of civil liberties and political rights. Steven levitsky competitive authoritarianism steven levitsky.
The common feature of authoritarian states is the enforcement of obedience to a central authority at the expense of personal freedoms, rule of law. Competitive authoritarianism steven levitsky defines competitive authoritarianism as a system in which democratic processes and institutions exists and are recognized by the opposition as legitimate but in which the playing field is unfairly tilted towards the incumbents, so that electoral defeat is extremely unlikely. Competitive authoritarianism in africa revisited springerlink. Modern authoritarianism, a form of government forms of government, is multifaceted. This article explores the relationship between competitive authoritarianism and popular protest.
The good thing is that scaring off specters is an easy assignment, 3 in particular for those who fail to believe in scary metaphysical creatures. Recommended citation moriarty, caitlin elizabeth, electoral authoritarianism in putins russia 20. The methodological chapters discuss issues of conceptualization and measurement in fresh and innovate ways. The roots of authoritarianism in the middle east the article is a chapter from. I authoritarian system robert bedeski encyclopedia of life support systems eolss authoritarian system robert bedeski, university of victoria, canada keywords. Steven levitsky speaks at oslo freedom forum 2011 competitive authoritarianism. One simple way to categorize governments is to analyze the power of the people. Competitive authoritarian regimes fall short on at least oneand usually moreof three defining attributes of democracy. Pdf coding competitive authoritarianism researchgate. Competitive authoritarianism describes countries in which elections are competitive and the primary means of gaining power but in which civil and political liberties are regularly abused by incumbents seeking to preserve power. Elections and democratization in authoritarian regimes.
Unesco eolss sample chapters government and politics vol. Steven levitsky competitive authoritarianism steven. Based on a detailed study of 35 cases in africa, asia, latin america, and postcommunist eurasia, this book explores the fate of competitive authoritarian regimes between 1990 and 2008. Competitive authoritarianism by steven levitsky cambridge core. I therefore have no choice but to find something suspect even in the humblest believer. Hybrid regimes after the cold war problems of international politics. The sources and dynamics of competitive authoritarianism in ukraine. Competitive authoritarian regimes fall short on at least oneand usually more of three defining attributes of democracy. The journal of democracy is the worlds leading publication on the theory and practice of democracy.
This honors thesis is brought to you for free and open access by dickinson scholar. Competitive authoritarianism describes countries in which elections are. Populism and competitive authoritarianism in the andes. Serious democratic contestation brings out the contradictions inherent in a competitive authoritarianism o forces autocratic incumbents to choose between egregiously violating democratic rules at the cost of international isolation and domestic conflict, or allowing the challenges to proceed at the cost of possible defeat. Authoritarianism also tends to embrace the informal and unregulated exercise of political power, a leadership that is selfappointed and even if elected cannot be displaced by citizens free choice among competitors, the arbitrary deprivation of civil liberties and little tolerance for meaningful opposition.
Such regimes, though not democratic,feature arenas of contestation in which opposition forces can challenge,and even oust,authoritarian incumbents. The common feature of authoritarian states is the enforcement of obedience to a central authority at. Even the most humane and compassionate of the monotheisms and polytheisms are complicit in this quiet and irrational authoritarianism. A theory of competitive authoritarian institutitons and. Such regimes need to be treated as a separate regime type rather than as in transition to democracy.
Building from the distinction between competitive and hegemonic authoritarian regimes, i argue that presence of relatively weaker incumbents renders competitive authori. In this model, an authoritarian government can introduce a system of fraudulent elections anticipating a democratic transition. Competitive authoritarianism invites the reader to think positively, if you ever find yourself in a bad condition, remember that even if you can lose everything else, your work, your property, your money and even your health knowledge can never be removed from you. A civilian regime in which democratic institutions exist in form but not in substance, because the electoral, legislative, judicial, media, and other institutions. You can read online competitive authoritarianism hybrid regimes after the cold war problems of international politics here in pdf, epub, mobi or docx formats. Thirdly, although different scholars have diverging perspectives, this article. Authoritarianism, principle of blind submission to authority, as opposed to individual freedom of thought and action.
The sources and dynamics of competitive authoritarianism in. A regime that is democratic in appearance but authoritarian in nature. Hegemonic electoral authoritarianism can be considered furthest away from democracy and closest to conventional authoritarianism, whereas competitive authoritarianism is the opposite. In contrast, media exposure bolsters competitive authoritarianism when there is less free media. Linkage, leverage, and democratization in the americas. Serious democratic contestation brings out the contradictions inherent in a competitive authoritarianism o forces autocratic incumbents to choose between egregiously violating democratic rules at the cost of international isolation and domestic conflict, or allowing the challenges to. Competitive authoritarianism university of washington. Drawing partly on huntington 1991, 110 1, geddes distinguishes personalist, military, and singleparty regimes. Steven levitsky competitive authoritarianism youtube. Competitive authoritarianism by steven levitsky august 2010. The origins and dynamics of hybrid regimes in the postcold war era steven levitsky harvard university lucan a. As figure 1 shows, building on the work of schumpeter, dahl, diamond, and others, we distinguish authoritarianism and democracy by the degree of contestation and participation in the selection of national leaders. Keywords competitive authoritarianism elections hybrid regimes. The empirical chapters 412 focus on the conflictive interaction between rulers and opposition parties in the central arena of struggle under electoral authoritarianism.
Way university of toronto this piece combines parts of chapter 1 introduction with chapter 2 theoretical framework of an early draft of our book manuscript. As a broad term, authoritarianism refers to arbitrary governmental authority. In recent years, new types of nondemocratic government have come to the fore,notably competitive authoritarianism. It has been accepted for inclusion by an authorized administrator. Aug 16, 2010 competitive authoritarian regimes in which autocrats submit to meaningful multiparty elections but engage in serious democratic abuse proliferated in the postcold war era.
In the americas, five of six competitive authoritarian regimes democratized in the postcold war period. Building upon comparative regime analysis and social movement research, it argues that this hybrid regime type facilitates popular protest by providing opposition forces with considerable institutional resources to organize themselves and confront regime elites, along with grievances that. Jun 24, 2011 steven levitsky speaks at oslo freedom forum 2011 competitive authoritarianism. Authoritarian system encyclopedia of life support systems. Hybrid regimes after the cold war problems of international politics levitsky, steven on. Liberalizing electoral outcomes in competitive authoritarian. Yet, linkage is a diffuse, structural form of influence that fails to capture the effects of concrete tools of international pressure targeted. A civilian regime in which democratic institutions exist in form but not in substance, because the electoral, legislative, judicial, media, and other institutions are so heavily skewed in favor of current power holders. Based on a detailed study of 35 cases in africa, asia, latin america, and postcommunist eurasia, this book explores the fate of competitive authoritarian regimes.
Although africa is the world region with the highest absolute number of competitive authoritarian regimes, political scientists working on africa have. Elections and democratization in authoritarian regimes daniela donno university of pittsburgh when do elections in authoritarian regimes lead to democracy. Competitive authoritarianism ebook by steven levitsky. In government, authoritarianism denotes any political system that concentrates power in the hands of a leader or a small elite that is not constitutionally responsible to the body of the people. Roessler university of maryland in the wake of the third wave of democratization, competitive authoritarianism has emerged as a prominent regime type. I authoritarian system robert bedeski encyclopedia of life support systems eolss and latin america in the 1960s and 1970s repressed popular political organization, and.
While political repression exists and humanrights organizations have documented the persecution of journalists and other opponents of. In much of africa and the former soviet union, and in parts of eastern europe, asia, and the americas, new regimes combined electoral competition with varying. However, it is possible to examine the similarities and differences among political systems and categorize different forms of government. Introduction chapter 1 competitive authoritarianism. The logic of electoral authoritarianism, a schedler doc.
The emergence and dynamics of hybrid regimes in the postcold war era steven levitsky harvard university lucan a. This introduc17 tory chapter addresses three analytical core issues with which the emergent 18 comparative study of electoral authoritarian regimes is grappling. State and society in iraq ten years after regime change 243 international a2airs. One of the most ambitious studies of the nature and behavior of hybrids in the past decade is steven levitsky and lucan ways 2010 book, competitive authoritarianism.
As in eastern europe, domestic variables cannot easily explain these outcomes. Mass organization and the durability of competitive authoritarian. Download book competitive authoritarianism hybrid regimes after the cold war problems of international politics in pdf format. Download pdf competitive authoritarianism hybrid regimes. Cambridge core comparative politics competitive authoritarianism by steven levitsky. Competitive authoritarianism has emerged as a major concept in the study of political regimes. Liberalizing electoral outcomes in competitive authoritarian regimes marc morje howard. Competitive authoritarian regimes in which autocrats. Hybrid regimes after the cold war steven levitsky, lucan a. Competitive authoritarianism in africa revisited matthijs bogaards sebastian elischer abstract competitive authoritarianism has emerged as a major concept in the study of political regimes.
Article information, pdf download for mass organization and the durability of. Based on a detailed study of 35 cases in africa, asia, latin america, and postcommunist eurasia, this book explores the. Modern democratic regimes all meet four minimum criteria. Since its inaugural issue appeared in january 1990, it has engaged both activists and intellectuals in critical discussions of the problems and. Read competitive authoritarianism hybrid regimes after the cold war by steven levitsky available from rakuten kobo. A theory of competitive authoritarian institutitons and democratic transition mario chac on october 8, 2009 abstract this paper develops a model to study the e ects of electoral competition in nondemocratic regimes. Hybrid regimes after the cold war problems of international politics levitsky, steven, way, lucan a. Pdf competitive authoritarianism in africa revisited. Download the rise of competitive authoritarianism pdf about the journal of democracy. Abstract this article argues that the current regime under president abdel fatah sisi has established a military electoral authoritarian state with a non. State and society in iraq ten years after regime change. Competitive authoritarianism must be distinguished from democracy on the one hand and fullscale authoritarianism on the other. The oyal institute of international airs from imposed democracy to competitive authoritarianism the accusations of authoritarian ambition levelled at the prime minister by a. Democratization and competitive authoritarianism in africa.
Comparing democracy and authoritarianism democracies. This book explores the fate of competitive authoritarian regimes in the postcold war era. Way competitive authoritarian regimes in which autocrats submit to meaningful multiparty elections but engage in serious democratic abuse proliferated in the postcold war era. Military electoral authoritarianism in egypt election. Democratization occurred in the dominican republic, guyana, nicaragua, and peru despite underdevelopment, extreme inequality, and presidentialism. The first one, competitive authoritarianism by levitsky and way, is a groundbreaking contribution in terms of providing an explanation of the stability of this specific type of political regime. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. Comparing democracy and authoritarianism no two governments, past or present, are exactly the same. The sources and dynamics of competitive authoritarianism. We also add to the discussion of repression and mobilization in authoritarian regimes by showing that media control, as a form of repression, can silence. The introduction of this special issue revisits levitsky and ways seminal study competitive authoritarianism.