What is CP?

Comparative politics vs. international relations- Comparative politics focuses on the inner
workings of a government and the politics by which governments make decisions. International
relations studies the external relationship between countries and how those countries interact.
These fields are becoming increasingly interconnected as globalization continues to expand.

Government v. politics- Government refers to the institutions in place that are used to make
collective decisions in society, often times addressing a collective dilemma. Politics refers to the
collective activity through which groups make decisions. Again there is a large degree of
intersection between these two, but the rule of thumb is that when we are discussing government
there is a much larger emphasis placed on the institutions and how these institutions interact with
one another. Politics on the other hand is more related to how communities will make decisions
often times within the realm of the established institutions.

Types of governments (liberal democracy, illiberal/hybrid regime/authoritarian regime)

Liberal and Illiberal democracies are examples of representative democracies

Liberal democracy- The US, New Zealand, Japan, Western Europe, etc. Countries that
have high amounts of political freedom and social autonomy. Of course there is variations within
this form of government but these types of governments are rated the highest on the Freedom
index.

illiberal/hybrid regimes- this is a very broad categorization for governments that are in
between a liberal democracy and authoritarian regimes. These governments have an indirect
democracy but varying levels of political freedom and political institutions. There is a wide
variety of names used for these forms of governments and some theorists prefer to use terms like
competitive authorianism, electoral authoritarianism to further accentuate the lack of
democratization within these countries. Singapore and Hungary are prime examples of this type
of government and some argue that Russia also fits this designation.

Authoritarian regimes- Government system based on submission to authority, ruling

elites, and centralized control

Freedom House & Economic Intelligence Unit data (what is it; how can we use it to study
regimes/democratization, etc.)- Freedom House is a nonprofit organization that surveys and
collects data on countries around the world then gives them a score out of 100 for how “free”
the nations are. Factors include, methods of attaining power, freedom of expression, oppression
of certain groups, etc. This is a useful tool in discerning where on the spectrum of democracy vs
authoritarianism, a country lies. Economic Intelligence Unit data works similarly but focuses
more on integrating economic data with political data to inform business and other people of the
stability and potential of certain countries.

State vs. nation- States are a political community formed by a territorial population subject to a
government. This usually refers to areas with established borders and the citizens within that
area. A nation is more nuanced and elusive. It refers to people with homelands, a group that
asserts their right to self determination. FOr example Jewish people are a part of a state as they
claim a distinct ethnos and distinguish themselves from those in their surrounding community.
Israel is the state established to allow the Jewish people self determination. Native Americans

What do we study in comparative politics, how do we study it, what do we compare?- It

starts with comparing institutions, but we also study the behavior of people within certain
countries. Why do people behave the way they do within a certain country? What influences do
institutions have on behavior and vice-versa

Approaches to studying comparative politics

● Institutional- focus on the relationship between institutions

● Rational choice- focuses on the benefits of a decision made, individuals work to
maximize their benefits. what will maximize each persons benefits?
● structural - focuses on the relationship between groups and other groups or the state.
○ Everything can be attributed to the interaction between groups often times using
history as an example for why a certain group is perceived the way it is.
○ Structure of the system L2n injustice
■ example we can attribute problems for POC and the African american
population in particular to the effects of slavery and segregation
■ Poverty is relationship btw owner and workers
● Cultural- focuses on how culture has formed institutions and what effect the culture has
on the politics and government actions. The effects the values and norms of a society
have on the government interactions.
● Interpretive- explanations are based on means and ideas. It is more closely related to
political philosophy and political theory and tries to use contemporary context to explain
the politics and behaviors of people
○ Things can be interpreted through the lens of gender and class
○ Based on your perspective it can look different

○ Voting means different things in different contetxts

■ Ep= being an active citizen

 ■ Auth Reg: seen as subversive to state

Case selection (most similar vs. most different)- Case selection do not have to pertain
specifically from country to country. We can analyze groups within countries, etc. The most
similar design system uses countries or groups that are similar and using their similarities to
highlight their differences. EX. Spain and France. The most different design system uses
countries or groups that are very different in terms of government system, culture, etc., and
compares them to figure out commonalities within their system and attribute certain
characteristics to said commonalities. We often use these systems with the goal of making
generalizations between the two cases and developing theories for why these trends/
generalizations exist.The right to rule.

Major themes of CP—power, authority, legitimacy, ideology

- Power- The capacity to bring about intended effects. The term is often used as a
synonym for influence, but is also used more narrowly to refer to more forceful modes of
influence notably, getting one’s way by threats
- Authority- The right to rule. Authority creates its own power, so long as people accept
that the person in authority has the right to make decisions.
- Legitimacy -The condition of being legitimate. A legitimate system of government is one
based on authority, and those subject to its rule recognize its right to make decisions
- Ideology- A system of connected beliefs, a shared view of the world, or a blueprint for
how politics, economics, and society should be structure

Problems in studying CP-too much info, traveling concepts, selection bias, globalization

Too much info- Sometimes we run into the problem that there is a lot of questions we
want to answer but not enough cases to make generalizations. Also there are too many
variables and factors that effect what we are trying to study.

Traveling concepts-there are certain concepts that do not mean the same thing in
different places, so it becomes hard to make conclusions given our understanding of a
concept may be very different from another persons. We need to be careful and precise
with our use of terms and definitions

Selection bias- We do not want to use cases that only align with what we are studying.
For example if we were studying voter turnout in countries we should not only study
countries that have hugh voter turnout.

Globalization-underestimating the effects of globalization and the interconnectedness

between countries has on certain policies. We should refrain from focusing too much on
that one as well as it begins to intersect with international relations.
BLM in Europe article (also for civil society week)- This article focuses on how the killing of
George Floyd sparked international outrage and solidarity between countries as protests arose
around the world. OF course there is specific attention paid to European countries and focuses on
the issues that they have in terms of racial relations with POC. The Article discusses the lack of
widespread acknowledgment of the existence of a subverted racial dichotomy throughout Europe
and expresses a feeling of hopefulness as there is finally mainstream attention to the injustices
that black Europenas have been facing for centuries. This article provides a great example of the
transnational coalitions that form within political movements, something we discussed
extensively when discussing civil society. The use of the same symbols and language
demonstrates the global unification we saw with this movement and emphasizes the importance
symbols like these can have in terms of making a global impact from a movement.

How do we study politics?- We study politics by applying the many different methods and
approaches that we outlined earlier to certain countries. We should analyze their culture,
institutions, public policy, political issues, among many other factors.

Normative Questions- questions that provides a basis for what should or ought to be.
They are phrased in a way with should or ought that suggests a certain course of action. These
are more used by policy makes. Ex. Should healthcare be provided for every citizen by the
government?

Positive questions- also called empirical questions. These questions are often phrased
with ‘is’ and can find direct results from information. These are the questions we are more
interested in studying in this class as we can find concrete answers more so than we can with
normative questions. Ex. Is there a relationship between level of education and voter turnout?

Scientific inquiry- a systematic and experimental way of looking into a problem. We can
propose a hypothesis and then conduct some sort of survey or experiment to either confirm or
disprove the hypothesis. It is important to isolate variables and draw conclusions based on
significant evidence that is provided through our inquiry. This is a method of formalizing our
observations.

Dependent and independent variables-Independent variables are variables that are not effected
by another variable, and are often manipulated to find difference in outcomes amongst
dependent variables. Dependent variables are dependent on another variable, thus making it easy
to analyze changes in the dependent variable when we manipulate the independent variable.

Correlation vs. causation - Correlation demonstrates a pattern between two studied variables
while causation means that something is caused by another variable. IT is important to know that
just because there is a relationship between two variables it does not mean that onr variable
causes the other variable to occur.
Hypotheses and hypothesis testing- a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of
limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation. Hypothesis testing is when we can
change a variable and look at the effects to see if it aligns with our hypothesis. If we see a
positive relationship then we can assume the hypothesis is correct if we do not find the presence
of confounding variables furing our study.

Hypothesis testing: process by which we can test the hypothesis by changing variables and daya

Induction v. deduction-

Induction- (Bottom up) observation to theory

Deduction- top up theory to observation ( from a hypothesis and then you observe the
changes)

Generalizability- one of the goals of copo is to create generalizations to do so we must have a

significant amount of information and have factored in the many variables that may nuance the
outcome of what we are trying to examine. Generalizability is the degree to which we can apply
generalizations to other cases. For example if we do a study on political participation, and choose
only to study western nations we cannot conclude that what we have figured out is generalizable
to other parts of the world.

● I.e: people under 30 tend to vote less

● Make sure it makes sense
○ Remember to not have selection bias in your case selection
○ BAD: Choosing Illiberal democracies and then using th

Necessary vs. sufficient conditions-

necessary - a condition that must be present for something to occur. Without it the thing
in question could not occur

Sufficient- a condition which by itself is enough for an event to occur.

example: Breathing is necessary for you to live. Breathing is not sufficient for you to live
because you cannot only breath and must do other things to live.

Example: Age and citizenship are necessary conditions to vote. Age and citizenship are
not sufficient for you to vote because there are other factors including felony status,etc.,
that may exclude you from voting in some states.

Economist article on happiness- this article casts doubt on the long promoted theory that there
is little correlation between money and happiness. The article shows that according to a variety
of recent surveys there was a strong correlation between wealth of the nation and happiness of
the citizens. This also held true for people within these countries. The wealthier citizens
expressed a higher degree of life satisfaction while those who are more poor were less satisfied
with their lives.

Whisper to a Roar—examples of what democracy is/isn’t

Whisper to a Roar
● Venezuela
○ Chavez was elected with promises that he would represent the poor and
the classes that had historically been excluded
○ The prior government did not care about the living conditions of the
citizens so they gambled and brought in an outsider (Chavez)
○ After election, Chavez changes the constitution and led the people to
believe that he was trying to improve the country
○ The new constitution concentrated his power and ability to subvert
democracy
○ Chavez gained control of congress, the judiciary, the electoral council, the
military, the economy, media
○ Chavez nationalized many sectors of the economy (ex: electrical, oil) by
taking control of private property without legal justification
○ Congress granted Chavez the right to write laws himself
○ Chavez closed Radio Caracas television (and 34 other radio and TV
stations), triggering large student movements
○ In 2005 the opposition parties boycotted the elections because there were
rumors that votes would not be secret, causing congress to be almost
completely pro-Chavez
○ “Young Vote” was a student organization dedicated to encouraging more
young people to vote
■ Chavez supporters suppressed demonstrators with violence
■ Student demonstrators painted their hands white to show the they
had no weapons in response to the armed police that came to
hinder their protests
○ On election day, polling places in areas that Chavez was supported worked
just fine, but in areas that he was not supported there were many
difficulties with voting
○ Chavez modified electoral districts to his benefit and remained in power
● Egypt
○ President Anwar Sadat was assassinated and Hosni Mubarak was the
successor without ever being elected (with 30 years of ruling Egypt)
 ○ Every 6 years, the parliament would nominate Mubarak and the people
could vote him up or down
■ Presented as a democratic process, but opposition was pushed out,
an example of electoral authoritarian regime
○ El Ghad party was youth-oriented, and democratic
■ Their candidate (Ayman Nour) was most popular in Egypt
opposition, but signatures were required to approve the party and
the obtained signatures were accused to be forged, and Ayman
Nour was imprisoned
○ Under international pressure, Mubarak announces that there would be a
multi-candidate presidential election and Ayman Nour is released and
allowed to campaign
○ After a non-democratic election, Ayman Nour was again sentenced to
prison, triggering student movements
○ Many people in Egypt could not afford food or basic needs and the labor
movement demanded improved conditions
○ Activists took to the internet to form a large strike on facebook for April
6th
■ Protests became violent and many were arrested before even taking
to the streets
■ Esraa Abdel Fattah was a protester who was imprisoned for 2
weeks and became a face of the student movement
● The press was there when she got released, and she told
them that protesting had been a mistake (this was a
government ruse to exploit her mental state)
○ Emergency law allowed for officials to suppress any type of protest
against the regime
■ Protestors were tortured in prison, and videos of it were leaked
online
○ On election day, many could not find their name on the voter registration
rolls
■ Mubarak won with 95% (not considered fair or free election)
○ Following many protests, Mubarak stepped down and turned the
government over to the military

● IS:
○ free and fair elections
○ multiple parties
○ free media
 ○ opposition is allowed
○ civil liberties
○ Polarchy’s Definition
○ Necessary and sufficient conditions
○ Political Culture
○ O’Donnel
○ Shmitter and Carl
● Examples of what a democracy isn’t
○ Censorship
○ Predetermined election results

Representative vs. direct democracy- representative democracies are much more common than
direct democracies mostly because the population size of most countries makes direct
democracies not practical.

- In a representative democracy citizens vote for candidates to represent them and their
interests within the government. The elected official is tasked with making collective
decisions on behalf of them and their constituents.
- Ex. USA, France, Spain, Germany, South Korea, etc.
- In a direct democracy citizens take part in deciding legislation. Although we do not see
any federal governments that operate in this manner, there are aspects of direct
democracy found in governments around the world. Take for example ballot initiatives
found in the United States. The citizens get to vote on whether or not recreational
marijuana should be legal or not (it definitely should be). The results of the ballot
initiative will decide whether or not the bill passes thus operating as a direct democracy
- Ex. Athens (Ancient greece)
- Indirect and and Representative democracy are the same thing

Representative Democracy can be liberal or illiberal

● Liberal
○ High level of political freedom
○ Civil rights and liberties
○ Norway, Sweden, US
○ Classified as Free by FH
○ Western Europe
○ Range of what they look like
● Illiberal
○ Hybrid regime
○ Features of democracy and authoritarianism
○ Partly Free on FH
○ Russia, Hungary, Venezuela
○ CHange of leadership is important to see the degree of Auth
 ○ Low levels of political freedoms
○ Not fair represenation

Polyarchy (Dahl)—6 institutions

- The rule by the many in a large scale county sized democracy.(polyarchal democracy)
- the 6 institutions are:
- Free, fair, and frequent elections,
- Elected officials
- Freedom of expression
- Alternative sources of information
- Associational autonomy
- Inclusive citizenship
- These are all necessary for a democracy to exist
- The polyarchy is different from a representative democracy although a representative
democracy can be considered a polyarchy
- This is different from direct democracy in small groups
- It is not necessarily a full/complete democracy
- Minimum for liberal democracy to occur
- Could go further in emphasizing political and civil liberties

More on what democracy is, where and why it’s successful (Schmitter and Karl, Economist
article)- This article focuses heavily on defining democracy. The authors delineate how vague
the term has become given its widespread use and application to various things that are not
necessarily related to the system of government that democracy embodies. As K and S state
“Modern political democracy is a system of governance in which rulers are held accountable for
their actions in the public realm by citizens, acting indirectly through the competition and
cooperation of their elected representatives.” However, despite the relatively specific definition
previously mentioned “democracy does not consist of a single unique set of institutions. There
are many types of democracy, and their diverse practices produce a similarly varied set of
effects.” According to K and S the most distinctive part of a democracy is the citizen. In this
statement, they are referring to the inclusivity of citizenship and the political rights that these
citizens have. Although all types of government have a public realm it is how citizens are
allowed to act within this realm that distinguishes it from other forms of government. There is a
large variety of features and procedures they outline as being a part of their formalized definition
of democracy. In terms of what it is not, they remind us not to give into the common fallacy that
“all good things come together.” They then clarify that although democracy may be more open
socially it does not mean it will be more open economically, there might still be groups that are
disenfranchised and so on. Also other forms of government may be more efficient in terms of
economics and administration.
Trends in number/type of democracy

Democratic conditions – elections, wealth, bourgeoisie (middle class), civil society,

necessary sufficient

Elections yes no

Civil and political rights yes Depends

wealth no no

Middle class Yes no

Civil society yes no

Democratic culture yes yes

Previous experience with no no

democracy

International organization depends no

Civil Society Yes No

- Elections- free, fair and frequent elections

- Wealth- countries in the middle east that are rich with resources are examples of
wealth not being an indicator of democracy
 - Middle class- Moore said there must be a middle class for a democracy to exist
and points to countries with a strong middle class as being very stable. Thus
making it necessary but not sufficient.
- Civil society- necessary for democracy as people must be able to express
themselves and freely communicate their discontent with the government. Free
media, civic organizations, ability to protest, etc. However this is not sufficient for
democracy as we can see with pre ww2 Germany which had a vibrant civil
society but dissented into tyranny rapidly
- Democratic culture - Huntington argued we need to have a culture that is
conducive with democracy. There needs to be a desire for government to be
democratic. Necessary and sufficient for government to be democratic.
- Previous experience with democracy is not necessary or sufficient for a
government to be a democracy.
- International organizations- Can be necessary as we have seen with Turkey
starting the process of democratizing to join the EU (although there are still clear
issues for them to legitimately be considered a democracy.) However simply
being a part of an international organization is not sufficient by any means for a
democracy to exist.

Democratization- Process why which states build institutions and processes needed to become
democracies

Waves of democratization (Huntington)

● First wave: 1828-1926 ( not necessarily a full democracies because women couldn’t vote
and people still had slaves)
○ Britain, France,
○ United States
■ Andrew Jackson built institutions to further democracy
● Second Wave: 1943-1962
○ India, Israel, japan,
○ West Germany, Italy ( had experienced backsliding in WWII that led to facism
but had now returned)
○ Ghana, Algeria (gained independence)
● Third Wave: 1947-1991
○ Southern and Eastern Europe ( due to USSR breakup), Latin America, Parts of
Africa
■ Able to see a snowballing effect of democracy
 ■ Case of US and South America:
● Overtly: US has the desire for peace and stability within the region
● Covertly: US exerts hegemonic control over region and other
countries are strongly encouraged/ pressured into becoming
demcorotic
● Potential 4th : Arab Spring (spring 2001) and the Color Revolutions (Eastern Europe)
○ Arab Spring
■ Merchant in Egypt set himself alight to protest the mass social and
economic inequalities that the government was not alleviating
■ Made Strides towards liberalism
○ Ukraine
■ Orange Revolution
● Occurred in Ukraine in 2004 after the disputed second round of the
presidential elections, leading to a repeat of the round. It was
supported by PORA, a civic youth group and political party that
supports increased national democracy.

Stages of democratization ( can be very long and drawn out processes and important to
note that these are just generalized and idealized steps)

● Liberalization
○ Reform starts
■ See the changes in the power dynamics and what government could look
like
■ Society sees what they want done realized
■ Can be done through a military coup, opposition party, resignation of an
authoritarian leader
● Transition
○ Figuring out the new rules/ government type
■ Unitary parliamentary? Federal parliamentary? President? Prime Minister?
■ Look at the precedent set by successful democracies and follow suit
■ Successful democracies will offer their assistance in maintaining strong
institutions
■ Establish what the voting process might look like
● Consolidation
○ General acceptance of the rules of the game
■ How will the democracy work
■ Acceptance of the democratic rules and institutions by different groups
( from a policy perspective)
● Military, media, opposition, catholic church
 ● Believe the institutions of democracy is better than anything else
and is legitimate
■ Don't need to agree with individuals or groups BUT there is trust that the
institutions themselves will produce results for the general benefit of the
population
● Example of lack of consolidation: BELARUS: The protests
questioning the elections come from the public reflection that the
institutions themselves are corrupt.
■ Accept the legitimacy of the people placed in power by the institutions
● Deepening
○ Move from superficial (democracy on paper) to substantial democracy
■ Democracy becomes part of the political culture
● Multiple free and fair elections
■ Trust in institutions,willingness to follow rules fairly and without needing
to be monitored or reminded
○ Could take a long time because different players could take the transition back

Democratic transition

Questions to consider:

● What do transitions look like? How long do they take?

○ Depends on the previous structure of the state and how rapid the change happens.
Democratization
● Are all transitions successful? Or can backsliding occur?
○ No. States can Move away from being away a democracy and backslide (Italy,
Germany, Spain)
● Do all transitions go in the same direction?
○ NOT always forward moving
○ Forward and backwards
● Are regime categories fluid?
○ Yes. Democracy, authoritarian, etc. can move in and out and be somewhere in the
middle
● Are there necessary conditions of each category?

Delegative democracy and the role of institutions (O’Donnell) (basically Illiberal/Flawed

Democracy)

● Strongly majoritarian and individualistic ( strong president and weak institutions)

○ Elections are the only accountability measures so it is highly majoritarian
 ○ Includes some of Dahl’s Polyarchy to get them to the point of having elections
● Vertical accountability, thus lacks the equitable division of power ( lacks horizontal
accountability)
○ Often paternalistic,clientelistic, prone to interruption and breakdown
○ Lacks the checks and balances to keep the executive from gaining too much
power
● Institutions are weak, unconsolidated or not institutionalized
○ Are subject to change by the head of state or head of government
○ Can breakdown because not everyone plays by the rules of the game.
○ Transition to democracy but society still expects the institutions to fail
○ Rules of the game are not agreed on by everyone

Representative vs Delegative Democracy

Representative Delegative

Is a variety of democracy founded on the Elected but doesn’t represent the entire
principle of a group of people as opposed to population
direct democracy.

People elect representatives who vote on laws Once in office Weakens the power of the
for us. Held Accountable by citizens through institutions and crackdown on the opposition
elections and constitution I.e: weakens the power of the legislature

Power is concentrated in one place

Example of Backsliding from Free to Delegative: Viktor Orban (Hungary)

● FH: Partly Free
● Elected in 2007 in Fedez Party
● Was Free market and Liberal party
● Was a democrat when he was elected
● Over time became less democratic and more conservative
● Changed constitution
● Consolidated power around himself

Example of continuing delegative democracy: Nicolas Maduro (Venezuela)

● Not Free
● Partly Free (Chavez)
● Continued Chavez policies after his death in 2013
 ● Once in office changed rules, given themselves more power
● Weakened legislature

In Class Question: The difference between elected officials fulfilling campaign promises
and doing things that are against the interest of the public

● History of what they said when were running is different to weakening or destroying the
institutions when faced with opposition so that they can't be challenged

What leads countries to backslide

Change in leadership and who is in power

I.e: Hungary

Types of transitions (South Korea, Spain, China)

South Korea (successful transition)

● Military coup d'etat in 1980 led by General Chun

○ Was a military regime that was highly restrictive
○ Gen. Chun controlled SK as a tightly controlled Authoritarian regime
● Lots of protests and general Chun realized that he was losing control
○ Protest on political oppression
○ Does Not have support of public
■ Need support of military and the media in order to function
■ Have the choice to become more repressive or give into the will of the
people
● Demcocratic transition in 1987 under Chun
○ Announced there would be reforms that would include a directly elected President
● From a polyarchy perspective:
○ FH: Free 83/100
○ FFF elections, multiple parties, competitive media, freedom of : association,
press, religion
○ Consolidate institutions- population accepts the rules if the game, still have
opposition to the leaders but they accept the institutions as functional and
legitimate
○ High levels of international engagement ( Joined OECD in 119)
Spain (successful transition with backsliding)

● Franco died in 1975 and Spain transitions to democracy

○ Franco did not appoint a successor( established rule on an individualist approach)
so it kickstarted transition to democracy
○ King Juan Carlos was a demcoactic supported so he helped back official
demcoacttic process
● New Constitution, elections were held in 1979
● Not all groups agreed on the legitimacy of the demoratic insitutions
● Attempted coup by Lieutenant Colonel Tejero
○ Military opposed to the new democratic government as they saw their powers
reduced
○ 1981 stormed parliament
○ King Carlos I went on airwaves and convinced leaders of the coup to step down
● Still have economic and political problems
○ ETA in Basque region ( Terrorist organization)
○ Devolution - gave powers from central government to the regional governments
and communities
● Since then they have had a stable consolidated democracy and joined the EU in 1986
● FH: Free 92/100

China (some transition but not democracy)

● Economic reform ( Deng, Jiang, Hu, Xi Jinping)

● Accepted into WTO in 2001
● Saw a growing middle class, the allowance of local elections, and some religious
worship was allowed
● Dissent is still heavily suppressed, multiple human rights violations and aggressive
control of the media
● FH: 10/100 Not Free

Democratic backsliding (Levitsky and Ziblatt)- How: Democracies Die:

● Causes of backsliding and dying democracies

○ Overt: Facism, commisums, military coup
○ Covert: Through “legal means”, sow in public confusion and polarize the nation
● italy and germany’s fall into fascism shows how one fateful alliance can elevate
authoritarians to power
 ○ if a charismatic outsider comes in at a time of crisis, insiders feel the need to use
him for their advantage because they have a mass following, but this bargain
gives the outsider credibility and power
■ The publicity given to them by established parties and political elites make
the public more aware of them and they start to gain public sympathy
○ Things that give rise to popular outsiders are economic rises and rising public
discontent and the electoral decline if mainstream political parties
■ IE: Hitler (via President Heidenberg), Mussolini (via Giovanni Giolitti),
Chavez (via Rafael Caldera)
○ also how chavez (venezuela) came to power; but also popularly elected
○ political parties are democracy’s gatekeepers, keep authoritarians on the
fringes
■ Finland, Belgium, Austria
● Keep authoritarian parties off the party ballots ( distancing)
● Root out extremist in their own ranks
● Avoid all alliances with antidemocratic parties and candidates
● Systematically isolate extremists and their ideas.
● Forge a united front with historically opposition to defeat
extremists
● Indicators of authoritarian behaviour
○ rejects the democratic rules of the game
■ Rejects constitution and is willing to violate it
■ Could call to cancel elections, ban civil liberties etc,
■ Endorse use of extraconsititional means( coups, protests,
■ Refuse to accept electoral results
○ denies the legitimacy of their opponents
■ Describe their rivals as subversive and opposed to conditional order
■ Describe rivals as threat to national security
■ Say opponents are criminals and are working with foreign governments
○ tolerates or encourages violence, and/or
■ Ties to gangs, paramilitary forces, orgs that engage in illicit violence
■ Encouraged ob attacks on opponents
■ Endorsed violence by not condemning it or willing to punish it
■ Praised political violence in another part of world
○ indicates a willingness to curtail civil liberties of opponents
■ Support laws that restrict civil liberties such as expanded libel and
defamation laws
■ Threaten to take punitive action against rival parties
● the president takes steps to take power to subvert democracy- creates a polarized
society where climate of panic, hostility and mutual distrust is allowed to thrive
○ capture the referees
 ■ Referees incl judicial system or law enforcement that are designed to be
neutral arbitrators
■ Capturing referees allows govt to use the law selectively (punish
opponent s and protect allies)
● Firing civil cervantes, packing courts with loyalist
○ buying off or enfeebling opponents
■ BIG CLIENTELISM HERE
■ Bribing, slidiling ( legal: defamation and libel suits), giving cooperative
parties exclusive access to govt
■ Jailed, killed, exiled, Financial opposition
■ Silence cultural figures
○ rewriting rules of game
■ Under the guise of protecting the public
■ Ie: Gerrymandering, Fidesz Party: banning campaigns in some regions,
SOuthern Responses to 1867 Reconstruction Act and 15th Amendment
○ using crisis/inventing crisis for power grab
■ Public rallies around the flag and becomes willing to give up civil liberties
for common probation
■ Opens opportunity to declare martial law, silence critics and weaken rivals
● constitution isn’t enough to stop backsliding, must be reinforced by unwritten rules
○ mutual toleration: accepting opponents as legitimate
○ institutional forbearance: avoiding actions that are legal but could endanger
democracy

Authoritarian Regimes

● Have a civil society but is very stained because there is massive paranoia and
crackdown on the part of the government

Authoritarianism- broad category which describes any form of non-democratic rule

● Based on the submission to authority

● Leaders rely on the control of the military, media, coercion, and patronage
● Head of Authoritarian regimes are often called dictators
○ Could be president, king, etc.

Totalitarianism- form of authoritarianism in which government domination of politics,

economy, society is virtually total.

● Type of Authoritarian Regime

 ● Based on the total control of society
● States can go through periods where they are more totalitarian
○ Cultive personality and devotion to leaders
○ Showing an external image of solidarity to the rest of the rest of the world is
important
■ Indicates strength and power
○ I.E: NORTH KOREA ( not China because they are just authoritarian)

Political ideology- set of ideas about politics constituting empirical statements about what is and
normative statements if what ought to be

● Spells out how political goals should be achieved

● “What is to be done” Lenin
● Ideology claims to answer questions about a specific topic
● Many (not all) authoritarian regimes have socific and strict ideologies
○ Communism
○ Others are focussed on the leader and reverence to that leader
● Examples: Socialism, Communism, Environmentalism

Characteristics of authoritarian regimes—which are necessary/sufficient?

● Weak institutions
○ Executive has all the control because they don't want to be challenged by
institutions
○ Don't want any opposition because they want to control the movement and ideas
of a society
● No elections/ elections with limited choices
○ Examples; Elections in China and Cuba
■ Arent multiparty
■ Not FFF
■ China: Vote is based on your role within the party ( In-Part focus
Authoritarian Regime)
● Restricted Civil and Political rights (Necessary and Sufficient)
● One/ No political parties
○ Opposition parties not allowed to exist, not allowed to contest the government/
party
○ Becomes difficult to separate the image of the state and the party
● Limited and controlled media (Necessary and Sufficient)
● Controlled economies
○ Could see some reforms of opening the communities but remains largely
controlled
 ● Corruption
○ Public figures and entity and leaders are largely corrupt and self-interested
○ Policies are meant to benefit the elite and those in powers
○ According to Transparency International- uses a scale of 1-100 and uses their
corruption perception index ( based on the perceived level of public corruption) to
rank countries
○
○ Most corrupt countries
■ South Sudan
■ Eritrea
■ North Korea 17/100
■ United States and France 69/100
○ Least corrupt
■ Scandinavia: Denmark 87/100

Types of authoritarian regimes (personal despot/personal rule, absolute monarchy,

presidents for life, ruling parties (communist/non-communist), military govt, theocracy)

Differences in styles of Authoritarianism

● Leader:
○ President for life or Monarch
● How did leaders come to power
○ Ruling Party chose
○ Elected and then made president for life
● Is there a part supporting the leader or is there a cultive personality around an individual
● Role of the military
● Role of religious institutions
Personal President for Absolute Ruling Parties Ruling Parties Military Theocracy:
despotism/ Life (P4L) Monarchy/ (Communist) (Non- Government
Personal Rule Ruling Families Communist) Prime example:
Iran

No allegiance Elected and Ruling family Ideology based: Single party Rule by the Government run by a
to institutions then changed had privileged Communism- commands military religious leader
or ideologies the relationship with ideology aimed at control of the
constitution colonial power ending the state. Came into
without going before existence of all Effectively rule power by a coup
through the independence classes. country through d’etat ( not a
necessary authoritarian supporting role)
steps means

Power is Changed Banning of Party created to Majority/all of Military is All decisions need to
consolidated institutions political parties advocate for the state installed as the go through a council
around an and created and restrictions workers so it government is head of state of guardians-
individual the role of in movement justified creating a made up from
P4L and ability to strong ruling class one party Make sure that
They are the organize.Could of those who were legislature passed
state and the have parliament loyal to the party Hard for follow the religious
state is them but their rules and would prevail opposition law
could be over the state parties to get
overturned elected because
they could be
banned or very
limited

No successor Power is Little gender Did not eliminate Have been in Opposition isn't To get out of power
linked to the equality the class system power for a recognized as you either die or step
office but also Little/no and moved away long time so it legitimate down but the
has a cultive separation of from pure is part of the transition of power
personality state and communism rules and the process is very
religious political culture internal and unclear
authority. that one party to outsiders
keeps winning

Individual and Different from Large control of Focussed on an Examples: The decision making
complete constitutional the media individual process is plagued
control of the monarchies Chile: with incomplete
straits of because their Limited civil and Gen. Augusto information and
power power rests in political rights Pinochet uncertainty and the
the hands of an overthrew the public is largely kept
elected Orchestrated democratic in the dark.
government elections and leader Salvador
(UK, Sweden, legislation Ayende and
Belgium, Spain) changed for their rules from 1974-
benefit. 1990

NB: The spectrum In Myanmar/

along which the Burma the
country is elected
authoritarian opposition was
depends on the not recognized
 leader as legitimate
and they weren’t
allowed to take
power

Examples: Examples: Examples: King Examples: Examples: Examples: Examples:

Mobutu Alberto Salman (Saudi Chinese CP Ba’ath Party Myanmar/ Iran
Sesoko (Zaire) Fujiori (Peru) Arabia) 23 Jan -Middle class Iraq under Burma
1965-1997 1990-2000 2015- present. emerged so moves Sadam Hussain Religious Leader:
Ferdinand away from being Gen. Than Ayatollah
Mummar al- Marcos United Arab Soviet CP PRI (Mexico)- Shwe-State Kohmeinin (1979-
Gaddafi (Philippines) Emirates (UAE), North Korea Institutional Peace and 1989)
(Libya) 19669- 1965-1986 Oman, Bahrain, Cuba CP Revolutionary Development
2011 Bashar al- Kuwait Party) Council, (1992- Ayatollah Kahmenei
Came up Assad Symbol: Hammer 1920s-2000 2011) (1989-present)
through the (Syria) and Scythe 2012-ongoing
military BUT 2000- ongoing Kept winning Aung San Suu Vatican City
he was the Saparmurat even though Kyi (NLD
individual that Niyazov they had other Leader City-state run by the
was holding ( Turkmenista parties Myanmar) Pope
the regime n) -Placed under
together 1990-2006 Singapore house arrest for Governed by the
-People’s action 20 years Catholic Church
Party -Now an
1959- ongoing illiberal Very few people that
-FH: Partly Free democracy live there aren't
Became more -Party runs the affiliated with the
soft govt Church
authoritarian
when
interaction with
international
community

Guardrails for democracy

● Checks on democracy that prevent a leader from rolling the democracy democracy back
○ checks and balances, free elections
○ mutual toleration: accepting opponents as legitimate
○ institutional forbearance: avoiding actions that are legal but could endanger
democracy
■ I.E: Republican controlled Senate approving Democratic Presidents SCJ
pick
■ Following an unwritten rule that has established a precedent
● I.E: Monarchy appointing PM from head of parliamentary majority
■ OPPOSITE: Utilize the institutions in an unrestrained and exploitative
manner
 ● Mutual Toleration and institutional forbearance reinforce each other
● Polarization destroys democratic norms
○ Extreme partisanship makes interest of groups within society seem mutually
exclusive and toleration is harder to sustain
● Written or unwritten rules that protect the strength of political institutions. The
constitution of a country can serve as a political guardrail, but often adequate political
guardrails necessitate unwritten ethical norms that politicians must follow
● Institutions alone are not enough to rein in elected autocrats. Constitutions must be
defended by political parties and organized citizens, but also by democratic norms

● 7 Guardrails
○ .virtue: respectful behavior
○ trustworthiness
○ knowledgable
○ national security
○ consistent ideology
○ tolderance
○ 7. institutional: hard guardrails- congress (govt institutions. and institutitional
forbearance (just because it isnt written, doesnt mean you should do it)

Electoral authoritarianism- An arrangement in which a regime gives the appearance of being

democratic, and offering voters choice, while concealing its authoritarian qualities.

● Limited Choice
● Manipulation of choices/ outcomes
● Outcomes are known in advance
● Outcomes confirm the authority of the ruler
○ Limited civil rights are in place so the ruler can remain in power
● High potential for political violence
● With single party rule: You have to be a member of that part to run in the 1st place
● NB: Democratic characteristics can be used in non-democracies: i.e: ELECTIONS

Rentier state- states revenue ( all/ part of it) comes from exporting raw materials/renting out
national resources (often oil) to foregin companies.

● Resource curse-Nations with an abundance of extractable resources (gas, oil, minerals)

tend to have state-operated companies extracting the resource, resulting in a lack of
economic competition, resulting in a lack of economic growth
● Results: Rich government and poor population
 ○ Economic and political development becomes increasingly difficult because it
becomes difficult to have political efficacy with all of the corruption
○ Doesnt go into the needed public
● Examples: Iran, Saudia Arabia, Venezuela, Nigeria

Authoritarian transition (Iran)

● Monarchy to Theocracy
○ Non-religious monarchy since the 16th cent
○ Islamic revolution of 1979 (aka Iranian Revolution)
■ Shah Reza Pahlavi overthrown (ruled from 1941-1979)
■ Ayatollah Khomeini returns to Iran and holds a referendum to establish a
theocracy
○ Under Shah Pahlavi
■ Sometimes seen as constitutional monarch because they had a Prime
Minister but he is largely ceremonial and doesn't really have power
■ Wanted to make Iran a more modern country
● Increased ties to the west, Israel, and had a globally integrationist
attitude
○ Communists who lived in large cities began to mobilize and oppose the Shah
■ Modernization was going to further the inequalities within society
■ Shah became increasingly autocratic and had army commit human rights
violations which included killing and sending dissenters to jail
○ The discontent of those on the right led to the rise of the Ayatollah
■ Ayatollah Khomeini spoke to the masses from exile because he had been
chased out of the country
■ His message appealed to many muslims
○ Late 70s: Shah is basically powerless and cannot stop the waves of change
spreading across the nation
○ Khomeini comes back to Iran and his referendum ”results” indicate that 99.99%
support a theocracy in Iran ( seen as beacon and hope for a change in the nation’s
path)
■ Truth: the communists did not support the referendum
● Since 1979 Iran has been a Theocratic regime
● Iran has elections and elected officials and legislature BUt the rule of who is president is
controlled by the Ayatollah
○ Ayatollah is celebrated as the Supreme Leader
○ If the president goes against the Ayatollah, the Ayatollah could weaken his
powers and replace him
○ Iranian Ayatollah and his Council of Guardians checks that everything is being
done correctly and it follows Islamic Law.
Persepolis-

Plot:

Follows the life of Marjane Satrapi, an outspoken, intelligent Iranian girl as she navigates society
during the Iranian revolution in 1979, the swift transition to a repressive theocracy, and the
established theocratic regime to which she returns after being sent to Vienna as her liberal
political and societal views placed her in danger under the regime.

Persepolis encapsulates the differences between theocracies, monarchies, and democracies

Key Characters:

● Marjane Satrapi - a young girl who grew up in a liberal-leaning family in iran.

○ Loved punk music and western films
○ In her childhood, she was easily influenced by her teachers and though the Shah
was good
○
● Uncle Anoush ,The communist
○ Under the repressive laws that look away civil liberties, he was arrested and
executed by the state
● Her Grandmother
○ Voice of reason and wisdom during all the personal and political upheaval of that
revolutionary era. Grandma often functions as a conscience for Marji, when she
most needs it, and as a broader perspective when Marji suffers from tunnel vision.
Most of all, Marji seems to have inherited her non-conformist spirit from her
grandmother who reminds us that women in that culture and era were assertive,
informed, and principled--and that they didn't deserve the disrespect and abuse
that many suffered under the revolutionary regime
○ spirited, outspoken, and wise
○ Her grandfather: Was a prince became a communist and was thrown into prison
with the rest of the dissenters under the Shah’s crackdown
● Her Parents
○ Part of the protests
● Her Boyfriends
○ Fernando (gay), Markus (cheater)
● Armed forces
● The film exposes social and political contradictions and absurdities that result from
radical interpretations of Islamic codes:
 ○ REDUCTION OF CIVIL LIBERTIES AND REPRESSIVE ACTION
Marji's Uncle Anoush, a revolutionary, survives 9 years in prison under the Shah,
yet he is arrested and executed by the revolutionary regime he trusts and defends.
Revolutionary guards claim that women need to be veiled and protected from
men's eyes, but they treat women with disdain. When Marji's mother asks a guard
to show some respect, he responds, "Show some respect to you? I screw women
like you and then dump them in the trash."
○ Many young boys were recruited into the military by being given a plastic key
and told it would get them into heaven-- "full of food, women, gold houses, and
diamonds"--all temptations designed to seduce young males. A friend's mother
reveals how she suffered so much to raise her 5 children "and now they want to
swap my oldest for this plastic key." 5
○ PATRONAGE/CLIENTELISM: Another family friend's husband needs a heart
operation or he will die. Ironically, the woman must now rely on the head of the
hospital--a man who has no qualifications for this position and, in fact, used to be
the woman's window washer. All he tells the wife is, "If God wills it, your
husband will get better," but he is unwilling to approve the surgery that her
husband desperately needs.
○ People are drinking more because it is forbidden, and they are willing to risk
arrests and fines for attending "very boozy parties" that make their lives
"bearable."
○ Even though the new regime claims to be religious, the guards can be bribed and
everyone lies in order to avoid arrest and to survive.
○ An art appreciation class features Botticelli's beautiful Birth of Venus, but all the
nudity is scribbled out in an ugly way. In a life drawing class, the model in a
chador looks the same from every angle, hardly the subject for a life drawing
class. As an art student, Marji complains that her mobility is hindered by long
scarves and pants that are too wide. She objects that men may wear tight clothes
even if women can see their underwear.

Political culture v. political ideology:

Political Ideology:

 A set of ideas about politics what is and what ought to be (spells out how political goals
should be achieved)

Political Culture: Pattern of attitudes, values, and beliefs about politics.

 An Individual’s or group’s attitudes towards the political system and its various parts and
the role of the system itself in society
o Elite Political Culture
  The values and norms regarding politics and political systems held by
those closest to the center of power including elected officials,
bureaucrats and business leaders

Culture and political culture:

- Culture: Set of distinctive, spiritual, material, intellectual, and emotional features

of a society or social group. (UNESCO, 2001)

How do we study political culture?:

- Public Manifestations: demonstration of power and purpose meetings, parades,

and other such
- Public Opinion: the desires, wants and thinking of the majority of the people. It is
the collective opinion of the people of a society or state on an issue or problem.
- Political Behavior: attempt to quantify and explain the influences that define a
person's political views, ideology, and levels of political participation

Civic Culture – parochial, subject, participant, and civic cultures (Almond and Verba):

- Three Types; 1. Parochial (a political culture where citizens have only limited
awareness of the existence of central government.) 2. Subject (the citizens see
themselves not as participants in the political process but as subjects of the
government.) 3. Participant (citizens believe both that they can contribute to the
system and that they are affected by it.)
- Civic Culture is a mix of subject and participant cultures
- Civic Culture is the democratic political culture

Political trust: Trust in institutions (Government, Parliament, media, etc,)

- Ex. Pew Public Trust in Government, 1958-2019 (Consequences for declining

trust)

Social Capital, “Civic Community”, and making govt work in Italy (Putnam):

- Collective value of all social networks and the inclinations that arise from these
networks to do things for each other
- Key component to building and maintaining democracy
- From social capital comes trust in government and others, and a desire to
cooperate and participate
- Why seemingly a-political organizations are important for political participation
 - What you get from interacting with people and horizontal accountability
- Trust in individuals and increased efficacy ( tools to participate)
- Can be created from non-political groups
- Bowling leagues
- Church groups
- Knitting circles
- Benefits democracy:
- Relationship between civil society and democracy: necessary for
democracy but not sufficient ( berman- Gr in Weimar to Facism needed
strong institutions but that was not present)

Materialism, post-materialism & generational change (Inglehart)

- Post materialism- is a set of values that emphasize self expression and quality of life
instead of economic and physical security(Materialism)
- Inglehart argues that we have seen a generational shift towards these post-material values
and away from the materialism we have seen in the past.This occurs because a country’s
political culture is not fixed. The effects of this generational shift can be seen in cognitive
mobilization, increased social and religious conflicts, more (and new/different)
participation, new political issues like LGBTQ+ rights and so on.
- Materialism is the more outdated set of values that Inglehart argues we are moving away
from. These values emphasize economic growth and security through protectionist
economic policies and more stringent and exclusive citizenship policies.

‘Clash of Civilizations’ (Huntington, Norris and Inglehart)

 Clash of civilization was a controversial thesis written by Huntington

o Argued that certain religions were not conducive to democracy, namely islam,
and that there would not be democracy in cultures where there was prevalence of
this religion.
o He argued that due to the long history of theocracy and the values that are innate
to the creation of a democracy are not found within Islamic culture.
 These values being separation between religious and secular authority,
rule of law, parliamentary institutions of representative government, the
buffer between individual rights and civil liberties as the buffer between
citizens and the power of the state, and social pluralism.
o Huntington argues that these values are a western development that have clear
Judeo-Christian origins.
 Norris and Inglehart wrote a paper that partially agreed with Huntington that says the
difference in culture makes a tremendous impact in the acceptance of these values
however the source of the clash doesn't revolve around political differences as much as it
 does around gender equality and sexual liberalization.

o Data from the most recent world value survey found that people in these cultures
agreed that democratization is the ideal path forward for their countries
 but the lack of acceptance of women as valued members of society may
be a sign that democracy would not survive in these cultures.
o There have been a number of studies that link gender equality to principles of
tolerance and egalitarianism. The presence of tolerance is necessary for
democracy to succeed making the lack of it a clear sign democracy would not in
these cultures.

World Values Survey (what is it; how can we use it to study political culture &
participation)-an international research program devoted to the scientific and academic study of
social, political, economic, religious and cultural values of people in the world. The project’s
goal is to assess which impact values stability or change over time has on the social, political and
economic development of countries and societies. They work in over 120 countries.

● The WVS seeks to help scientists and policy makers understand changes in the beliefs,
values and motivations of people throughout the world. Thousands of political scientists,
sociologists, social psychologists, anthropologists and economists have used these data to
analyze such topics as economic development, democratization, religion, gender equality,
social capital, and subjective well-being. These data have also been widely used by
government officials, journalists and students, and groups at the World Bank have
analyzed the linkages between cultural factors and economic development.
● For our class, we can basically just apply it to the ways in which it would help actual
political scientists in the field.

Political participation- any activity intended to influence who governs or the decisions made
by those who do. There is a wide variety of political participation and varying levels that
political participation is allowed in governments around the world.

Conventional vs. unconventional participation-

Conventional- forms of participation that fit within the parameters of political participation as
established by the government

- Examples: voting, volunteering for a candidate party or group, lobbying, writing

letters, donating, striking, lawful demonstration
Unconventional- forms of participation that are outside of the parameters of political
participation as established by the government or are at least not generally approved of by the
state

- Examples: boycotts, stikes( where they are illegal) , unlawful demonstrations,

occupations, hijacking, bombing, kidnapping, violence, etc.

Theories of participation (benefits, resources, deprivation, free rider problem)

● Benefits: Something to gain

○ Issue: Passionate about a topic you want to see resolved
○ Material: Hope to receive some material reward as a result of of your participation
■ I.E: If you candidate gets picked you could potentially get a job
■ Countries with big issues with Clientelism exaggerate the material benefit
■ You receive something of value
● Better school placement for constituents’ children, water bottle, t-
shirt, chicken
○ Personal: You gain the benefit of being around like minded individuals and it
drives you to find others who are passionate about the same topics

● Relative Deprivation: Those who are likely to participate in the political arena are those
with the fewest resources and access to services such as education.
○ In countries with marginalized groups
○ Protest based on feels of frustration and alienation
○ Less money, education and ability to network
○ Act against the status quo
○ Groups will participate through increasingly unconventional means

● Resources: Protests and political participation is uptaken by those who have the
resources, skills and education to petition the government. Political participation is an act
by those with the political efficacy and education
○ Protests are seen as political resources
○ Unconventional protests are seen as part of normal political process
○ Have connections and networks and use that to petition the government in
conventional manner and in unconventional participation by gaining permits
○ Have the skills needed to actively participate in their society
○ Have the sophistication and experience to navigate the political process

● Free Rider Problem: Citizens that benefit off of the political participation of others.
They choose not to engage with the political process because in their opinion their efforts
are not needed if the desired outcome is already going to be achieved by those actively
participating.
 ○ Most citizens acknowledge that it is their civic duty to pay taxes, serve on a jury,
and perhaps even fight in a war; why, then, should they not want to invest the
small amount of effort involved in voting at elections? Without it, abstainers take
a free ride at the expense of the conscientious. Political abstainers reep the
benefits and face the consequences in a system they don’t participate in.

Tactics, actions, repertoires of collective action (how do they differ, what they are
influenced by, BLM movement)

-
- Tactics of protests are dependent on the society where mobilization is occurring. Political
culture, history, geography, etc. all play a role in how people express their discontent and
to make their point. People under more restrictive governments may not protest as overtly
due to fear of retribution from the government. France for example has a tendency to
burn cars during protests which is not specific to their country but provides an example of
their tactics reflecting their political culture.

Participation “overload”- Can there be too much of a good thing? Almond and Verba warned
against overload, meaning there are too many demands for the state to handle. Does too much
civil engagement lead to unstable democracy? RIght now we are in a period of distrust in the
government and discontent with the racial relations in our country. With all these protests are we
in a way destabilizing our government institutions? (these are questions posed in the lecure and
do not reflect my beliefs) #BLMMM #ACAB #DEFUNDTHEPOLICE

Participation in hybrid/authoritarian regimes

 Contentious politics (organizing and participating) in non-democracies can lead to major

changes towards democracy
o Breakdown of non-democratic institutions
o Removed of non-democratic leaders
 Ex. Pro-democracy movements in Eastern Europe 1989
 E. GR: Used non-political organizations which lead to them
toppling regimes i.e: Church)
 ; Arab Spring ( Egypt slow chnage)
 Removal of S.Korea Dictator 1987-1988 (lost control of country)
 It can also lead to further repression

o Ex. China 1989 (Tiananmen Square)

 Lasted 7 Weeks
 Labor activists and students marched
 Military Response
 Widespread arrest of protesters and political organizers
  Banned foreign press

o Burma (Myanmar) 1988,

 Uprising by Aung San Suu Kyi’s Party
 Military Killed thousands
 Military instated martial law
 No peaceful transition even though she won the elections which was a
hallmark for democracy
 San Suu Kyi was placed under house arrest
o Mexico City 1968
 Authoritarian
 Children were killed, beaten, arrested for protesting

 There are typically restrictions on the work of interest groups in authoritarian regimes
because rulers see them as potential threats and seek either to repress them or incorporate
them into the regime

Civil Society
 The voluntary organizations and associations that are autonomous from the state
 The arena that exists between the state and the individual, and within which groups take
collective action on shared interests

 Important to building social capital and networks

o Friends of the Earth
o UAW
o School PTA
o Bowling League- Alley Rats
o Rotary Intl
o Bird Watching

 Alexis de Tocqueville
o Studies democracy in America in 1840
o America is a nation of joiners
o Join all types of a=organizations that are independent of the state
o Civil society needs to be deep and side (include many people in society and
covers a lot of topics)
o Need to have a political culture of civic engagement

 Many argue like Tocqueville and Putnam that a wide(covering many different areas) and
deep (with many people) are necessary for a stable democracy. These engagements help
create horizontal relationships between the government and groups. People are also
encouraged to think outside of themselves and think of the larger community thus giving
people the tools they need to be politically active if they choose.
  Civil Society is related to:
o Trust
 Able to find likeminded people a
o Intra-Personal Interactions
 Gain a better understanding of the community you are in and the
communities you are around
o Civic community
 Able to think beyond yourself which L2 the creation of an active and well
informed polity
o Social Capital
 Gain the skills of networking and there is trust in one other to develop
society
 lead to building coalitions

Gain political efficacy to

Activity Builds trust
stand against tearing
Have a bowling ally and need among indivuals who Able to think beying self Builds social capital and
down of building or to
justification to not tear it down might not have anything to the larger community networking
davocate for new
else in common
community space

 Putnam argues that civil society is necessary and sufficient for democracy but Berman’s
investigation of Germany contradicts Putnam’s claim

INEREST GROUPS

 A body that works outside government to influence public policy

 Also known as nongovernmental organization (ngo)
 Does this through a combination of direct pressure on the government and the
bureaucracy and indirect pressure via the media and public opinion
 Come in many forms: employer organizations, consumer groups, professional bodies,
labor unions, single-issue groups
 They’re a crucial channel of communication between society and government
 Engage in conventional politics
 Could be viewed as protective or promotional
o Protective
 An interest group that seeks selective benefits for its members and insider
status with relevant government departments.
 Need Exclusive membership
 Group advocates for group needs
 NIMBY
 An acronym for ‘not in my back yard’, describing the efforts of
some local interest groups to block geographically focused
developments.
o Promotional
  An ‘interest’ group that promotes wider issues and causes than is the case
with protective groups focused on the tangible interests of their members.
 Aim: public awareness and sway public opinion
 Anyone can join and mobilize around a certain issue

Social Movements

 Brings together a range of different organizations to work together

 Typically not formally organized
 Challenges the status quo/existing elite
 Objectives are broad and cross sectional
 Often (but not always) use unorthodox means
 Use conventional and unconventional political participation
 Ex: BLM, meToo, LGBTQ+

How interest groups and social movements are similar/different

 Similar
o Both can participate in conventional political participation
o Both act as intermediary groups between the people and the government
 Different
o Social movements consist of many interest groups
 Social movements are generally pretty broad and cross sectional. They
encompass a wide variety of issues under the umbrella of one movement.
The environmental movement covers many different issues and is less
specific than the efforts of interest groups.
o Social movements do not have a clear or defined leader (but could definitely have
figureheads), while interest groups usually have a formed structure
o Interest groups are much more organized in their efforts and focused on given
issues. Environmental interest groups will lobby for specific candidates, try to get
certain legislation to pass, etc.
o Interest groups often use conventional participation means while social
movements use unorthodox means.

Interest groups- civil society “occupational” or “cause” groups aka pressure groups.
Intermediary groups like parties engage in conventional politics. Often times like minded
individuals working towards a specific goal and coordinating their effort to reach this goal. They
participate in lobbying, endorsements, research, etc.
Social Movements- bring together a range of different organizations to work together. Typically
not very formally organized and are there to challenge the status quo in terms of political
realities, social rights, civil liberties, the existing elites,etc. Objectives are often broad and cross-
sectional. Often work in unorthodox ways but use a blend of conventional and unconventional
politics.

Elite political

culture

Critique of civil society as condition for democracy (Berman)

- Berman challenges the widespread assumption that civil society is a necessary

condition for democracy to exist. He argues that although these factors are
important for a democracy they can lead to democratic backsliding towards
authoritarianism if one social group amasses a lot of power. He frames his
argument around Germany pre ww2 which had a very rich civil society but
quickly regressed into tyranny.
- Hitler overtook many of the civil society groups that in Putnam’s opinion created
institutional strength
- He gained lots of public support and, after being validated by institutions,
overthrew government and instated his own political party as an authoritarian
regime

A few tips:

1) For all areas, think about how things relate to/ are similar/different in liberal
democracies hybrid/illiberal democracies, and authoritarian regimes.

2) Make sure you have some examples in mind to illustrate the concepts.

3) For Persepolis, know the key characters and plot. Be prepared to discuss how it relates
to topics in class. For both Persepolis and Whisper to a Roar, you may be asked questions
about the film or to use some aspect of it as an example of a concept.

4) Be sure you are up on current events. These make for great examples!

civic culture ( almond and verba)

Parochial
Subject
Participant- too much overload would become unstable
Cici culture- subjects and participant was most democratic

civic community (Putnam)

Horizontal relations
High levels of trust
Efficacy, and ability to join
Pantherstan has recently transitioned to a democracy. You’ve been asked to help
advise the country as it develops a new democratic constitution.
Here is some relevant information about Pantherstan:

 It recently transitioned from 50+ years of hard-line authoritarian rule under a

military dictatorship. (semi-pres)
 It has a population of about 150 million, which is about half the size of the
U.S. (and twice the size of Germany).
 Pantherstan is ethnically and linguistically divided. The different ethnic groups
have their own languages. Each ethnic group is concentrated in a certain
geographic area of the country. Thus far, 5-6 proto political parties have
emerged, which are all representative of the different ethnic/linguistic
groups. (federal) (bicameral)

You are tasked with offering advice on which institutions the new democracy should
select for three of the following:

 Structure: Federal/Unitary
 Executive: Presidential/Semi-Presidential/Parliamentary
 Legislature: Bicameral/Unicameral
 Electoral System: SMD/AV/PR/MMP/STV

In your brief, please do the following 1) Explain whether the set of institutions you’ve
selected are overall consensus or majoritarian according to Lijphart; 2) Based on this
assessment, write a generalizable hypotheses, identifying the independent and
dependent variables; and 3) Explain which institution you would select and why based
on what you’ve learned this semester for each of the three areas you have selected
from the list above. In your explanation, be sure to refer to relevant readings/films from
the entire semester.