The Authoritarian Social Contract and the Erosion of Democratic Legitimacy

This provocative and timely book challenges conventional wisdom about political legitimacy.While democratic social contracts are traditionally viewed as the only legitimate form of governance, it reveals how authoritarian states maintain stability and popular support without relying solely on repression. The author dissects the “authoritarian social contract”-a tacit agreement between rulers and citizens based not on political participation but on the delivery of three critical benefits: social mobility and prosperity, safety and security, and a sphere of negative freedom outside the political realm, to show that when these benefits are successfully provided, authoritarian regimes can achieve remarkable stability and genuine popular support.He also demonstrates how democracies worldwide are experiencing legitimacy crises precisely because they are failing to deliver these same fundamental benefits.As democratic nations witness declining social mobility, security challenges, and paradox