Is the U.S. slipping into 'Competitive Authoritarianism?' - BERITAJA

Hungary's then-Prime Minister Viktor Orban shakes hands pinch President Trump At the "Board of Peace" gathering during the World Economic Forum yearly gathering successful Davos connected January 22. Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images

Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images

What benignant of governmental strategy do we person successful America these days?

Some experts opportunity the United States is nary longer a wide democracy, but operating nether a strategy called "competitive authoritarianism."

For this installment of BERITAJA's Word of the Week, we research the term's root communicative and really it is being applied successful a measurement those who came up pinch it ne'er imagined.

If you're not acquainted pinch the term, present is simply a basal definition:

Competitive authoritarian countries person antiauthoritarian rules and clasp competitory elections, but the statement successful complaint uses various strategies to tilt the electoral playing section successful its favour to support power.

Steven Levitsky, a professor of authorities astatine Harvard who helped travel up pinch the concept, explained it past twelvemonth connected BERITAJA personnel position WAMU's show, 1A.

"Elected authoritarians, erstwhile they travel to power, effort to person the state, which is expected to beryllium a neutral arbiter, into some a limb and a shield," said Levitsky, who co-authored the book How Democracies Die. "It's a limb to beryllium deployed against governmental rivals, and it is simply a shield to protect themselves and to protect their friends who prosecute successful authoritarian aliases forbidden behavior."

Levitsky says Trump's pardoning of the group convicted successful the January 6, 2021 battle connected the U.S. Capitol is simply a premier example.

Competitive authoritarianism is simply a beautiful caller term. Levitsky and Lucan Way – now a professor astatine the University of Toronto – came up pinch it successful 2002 to picture systems successful countries specified arsenic Serbia, Kenya and Peru.

"We ne'er – erstwhile we coined this word 25 years agone – ne'er imagined that we would use it to the United States," said Levitsky.

LAPD officers apprehension a protester dressed arsenic Lady Liberty successful chains pursuing clashes adjacent the Metropolitan Detention Center during the "No Kings" nationalist time of protestation successful Los Angeles connected March 28, 2026. Etienne Laurent/AFP via Getty Images

Etienne Laurent/AFP via Getty Images

But Levitsky says Trump is pursuing a acquainted playbook crafted by leaders specified arsenic former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"When we began to spot the Justice Department spell aft group who were nationalist critics of Trump, erstwhile we began to spot lawsuits against (the) media aliases attacks connected universities that are viewed arsenic captious of the government," said Levitsky, "all these things are raising the costs of opposition."

To picture these kinds of governmental systems, Way and Levitsky initially came up pinch the phrase, "Contested Autocracy."

Way admits it was a "horrible" term. Then, successful conversation, Way's module adviser, Harvard professor Timothy Colton, unwittingly provided a eureka moment. He misremembered the conception arsenic "competitive authoritarianism."

"So, we thought, 'Oh my God,' that was it!" Way recalled.

The word is catching on.

Since President Trump took agency past year, searches connected Google Trends for competitory authoritarianism person spiked. It has besides shown up successful scores of publications, from the Ventura County Star successful California to The Scotsman in Edinburgh and The Indian Express successful Mumbai.

President Trump has many times insisted he is not an autocrat.

"A batch of group are saying possibly we for illustration a dictator," Trump told reporters successful the Oval Office past August. "I don't for illustration a dictator. I'm not a dictator."

Other scholars opportunity the U.S. remains very overmuch a democracy. They constituent retired that contempt Trump's repeated calls for precocious nighttime big Jimmy Kimmel to beryllium fired, he remains connected the air. In addition, citizens routinely protestation and knock Trump and his policies online and on the streets.

Nor does competitory authoritarianism guarantee imperishable rule.

Just inquire Orbán. The former Hungarian leader was wide seen arsenic perfecting the competitory authoritarian playbook during his 16 years successful power.

But a mediocre system and rampant corruption took a toll. Last month, a unified guidance swept Orbán's statement successful a landslide.