III.

CONCEPTS (PART 2)

What is the condition of the institutions

that ensures participation and representation
in an authoritarian regime?

a. AUTHORITARIAN ELECTIONS AND PARTIES

Points to remember:

 Help overcome dictator’s dilemma: it encourages participation and channel.

 Many authoritarian regimes create institutions that at least resemble election, parties,
and interest group, but differing from their more democratic counterparts both in parts
and actions.
 Authoritarian regimes create such institutions for the reason that an authoritarian leader
cannot rule by repression alone. They must gain support and legitimacy from their rival
elite and the general populace.
 Ensures elite cohesion and regime survival.

Why do authoritarian regimes create or allow Electoral and Party System?

 Such system serves as a facade of democratic legitimacy, both domestically and

internationally, which gives the regime more legitimacy.
 Jennifer Gandhi (2008) argues that both legislature and multiple parties co-opt the
opposition and provide space for some policy compromise.
 Beatriz Magaloni (2006) argues that aside from co-opting opposition within the system,
election provide the ruling party with information on who opposed it (helping overcome
Dictator’s dilemma).
 Allows power sharing among leaders within the ruling party, and deterred opponents by
showing (via large election victories) its ability to mobilize support.

But danger always exist, it is rare that the opposition will find a way to actually gain power.
When this happens, the ruling party openly “steal” the election through Vote Fraud or the
manipulation of election results. As in the case of: Kenya, in December 2007, setting off two
months of ethnically based violence, killing 1,500 and displaced hundreds of thousands. Which
can be part of a transition from authoritarian to democratic regime.

b. CIVIL SOCIETY IN AUTHORITARIAN REGIME

In an Authoritarian Regime civil society is extremely circumscribed and repressed.

 Communist regimes at their height such as China and Soviet Union were totalitarian.
In a totalitarian regime, civil society is completely eliminated in; the ruling party
“represents” all interest that it believes deserve representation.
  Non-communist regime uses state corporatism – the idea that each interest in society
should be represented by one organization – to control interest group within civil society
and chooses the ones it wishes to recognize.
c. PATRON-CLIENT RELATIONS IN AUTHORITARIAN REGIME

In the absence of effective means of representation and participation, following a patron may be
the best available option.

 By attaching oneself to a powerful patron, citizens can gain access to some resources,
power, and influence.
 As the patron gains more power and position in the system, the clients gain also
through special privilege and access to resources.

But this type of system clientelism has numerous problems.

Such as:

 Its informality means that no client is ever guaranteed of anything. The patron will not
always respond to the client’s demand, and clients will have no resource unless an
alternative patron is available.
 It discourages citizens from organizing on the basis of collective interest.