Indicators of Authoritarian Behavior of Political Leaders. The Bolsonaro Case (2019–2020)

Adriano de Oliveira Othon

Abstract


Based on indicators of the authoritarian behavior of political leaders developed by Levitsky and Ziblatt (2018), this paper examines the political discourse, stances, and attitudes of Jair Bolsonaro, president of Brazil, during his first two years in office. The research uses a qualitative case study approach centered on literature review, with emphasis on chapters of books and journal articles, as well as news reports for an empirical observation of the behavior of the president of Brazil concerning rules and institutions of democracy. The essentially authoritarian behavior of Bolsonaro signals a trend toward democratic regression in Brazil; however, it is not technically correct to affirm that Brazil is already being governed through an authoritarian regime.


Keywords


democracy; authoritarianism; Brazil; Bolsonaro

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17951/al.2021.11.83-98
Date of publication: 2021-11-05 00:24:23
Date of submission: 2021-03-30 12:41:26


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