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Mechanisms of democratic authoritarianism: de-centring the executive in South Asia and beyond

Bajpai, Rochana; Kureshi, Yasser

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Authors

Yasser Kureshi



Abstract

How do we theorize the unexpected global trend of democratic regression? Building upon recent literature on backsliding, we offer a new conceptualization of the notion of democratic authoritarianism, denoting the use of democratic-looking institutions for the expansion of authoritarian forms of power across different regime types, democratic and authoritarian. Whereas existing accounts of autocratization focus overwhelmingly on the executive, we outline democratic authoritarianism as a broader process involving mechanisms of institutional and ideational capture, which may be initiated and implemented by executives, legislatures, judiciaries as well as non-state organizations, often acting in tandem. Our notion of democratic authoritarianism can explain autocratization in states with both strong and weak elected executives; it recognizes the role of anti-pluralist ideologies and civil society organizations in enabling autocratization. We illustrate our argument through a comparative analysis of contemporary South Asia, which we argue illustrates different variants of democratic authoritarianism. Through detailed case studies of India and Pakistan since 2014, we show that South Asia is significant for understandings of autocratization, notably, the range of instruments deployed and the different stages of democratic authoritarianism, the interplay between state and societal institutions, and the limits of commonly suggested remedies, notably empowering the judiciary and civil society.

Citation

Bajpai, R., & Kureshi, Y. (2022). Mechanisms of democratic authoritarianism: de-centring the executive in South Asia and beyond. Democratization, 29(8), 1375-1396. https://doi.org/10.1080/13510347.2022.2062324

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Mar 18, 2022
Online Publication Date Apr 19, 2022
Publication Date Apr 19, 2022
Deposit Date May 3, 2022
Publicly Available Date May 3, 2022
Journal Democratization
Print ISSN 1351-0347
Electronic ISSN 1743-890X
Publisher Taylor and Francis Group
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 29
Issue 8
Pages 1375-1396
DOI https://doi.org/10.1080/13510347.2022.2062324
Keywords Democracy, authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, autocratization, populism, ethnic nationalism, hybrid regimes, South Asia, India, Pakistan
Publisher URL https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13510347.2022.2062324

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