Inequality under Authoritarian Rule

• Published in: Government and opposition (London) Vol. 56; no. 2; pp. 201 - 225
• Main Author: Teo, Terence K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01.04.2021
• Subjects: Authoritarianism; Autocracy; Comparative politics; Competition; Democracy; Democratization; Elections; Ideology; Income distribution; Income inequality; Institutionalization; Opposition parties; Political parties; Prospects; Tax rates; Turn of the century; Voters; ideology; party institutionalization; income inequality; electoral competition; authoritarian regimes
• ISSN: 0017-257X; 1477-7053
• DOI: 10.1017/gov.2019.19

Since the turn of the century, much comparative politics scholarship has examined whether and how income inequality affects the prospects of democratization and, to a lesser extent, whether democracy reduces inequality. What is lacking, however, is a close examination of the extent of income inequality in authoritarian regimes. This article examines the variation in inequality across authoritarian regimes and argues that electoral competition – in conjunction with party ideology and the extent of party institutionalization – helps explain the pattern of inequality under authoritarian rule. I find that electoral authoritarian (EA) regimes – regimes in which multiple parties legally compete in elections – have lower levels of inequality compared to non-EA regimes. I further find that inequality is lower in EA regimes with left-leaning ruling parties and more institutionalized party systems. This analysis highlights the value of exploring the dynamics and contingent effects of electoral competition in authoritarian regimes.