AP® Comparative Government and Politics review sheet from Aim for Five (aimforfive.com/comp-gov/units/1/1-9)
Unit 1 · Topic 1.9
1.9 Sustaining Legitimacy
Governments have to keep earning legitimacy. They do it by delivering economic growth and services, holding elections, fighting corruption, appealing to nationalism or religion and, in authoritarian regimes, controlling dissent. Weak performance, corruption and repression wear legitimacy down.
Key terms
- performance legitimacy
- economic growth
- nationalism
- corruption
- civil liberties
Ways to sustain legitimacy
- Deliver results: growth, jobs, schools, health care and security.
- Hold elections and respect the results, which shows rulers answer to citizens and gives people a sense that their voice counts (political efficacy).
- Uphold the rule of law and protect rights, so people trust the system to be fair.
- Settle conflicts peacefully and hand over power peacefully after elections.
- Fight corruption, or at least be seen to.
- Appeal to national pride, religion or a founding story.
- Use social programs to win support from key groups.
- Limit dissent: censorship and repression can keep a regime in place, but they don't create belief in its right to rule and can backfire.
How each country tries
| Country | Main strategies | Pressures |
|---|---|---|
| UK | Elections, rule of law, referendums on big questions | Low trust in politicians; debate over the union |
| Mexico | Competitive elections, social programs, anti-corruption pledges | Cartel violence, corruption, impunity |
| Nigeria | Elections, federal character in appointments | Insecurity, corruption, disputed elections, low turnout |
| Russia | Nationalism, order and stability, controlled elections | Sanctions, war costs, repression of critics |
| Iran | Religious authority, revolutionary ideals, elections | Economic hardship, protests, falling turnout |
| China | Economic growth, nationalism, anti-corruption campaign | Slowing growth, inequality, an aging population |
Signs that legitimacy is slipping
Turnout is a useful clue. In Iran, official turnout in the first round of the 2024 presidential election was about 40%, the lowest for a presidential vote since the 1979 revolution. In Nigeria, turnout in the 2023 presidential election was about 27% of registered voters. Low turnout can reflect distrust, boycotts, insecurity or poor voter rolls, so be careful about reading it as one thing.
Large protests are another sign. Iran saw big waves in 2009, 2017–18, 2019 and 2022. China's leaders have tried to stay ahead of discontent with a broad anti-corruption campaign since 2012, under which millions of officials have been investigated.
Devolution: a two-way effect
Handing power to regional governments can build legitimacy or weaken it. It helps when it fits policies to local needs, lets regions try new ideas, checks the center, brings more people into politics and gives minority groups a government they control.
It hurts when policies clash from region to region, gaps between rich and poor regions grow, regions fight over money, or local and ethnic tensions sharpen. The UK shows both sides: devolution gave Scotland and Wales their own voice, and it also gave Scottish nationalists a platform to push for independence.
Disputed elections
Doubts about whether an election was honest can bring people into the streets and drain legitimacy. Iran's disputed 2009 presidential result set off the Green Movement protests. Russia's 2011 Duma election, which observers said was marred by fraud, led to the largest Moscow protests in years. After Mexico's very close 2006 presidential race, the losing candidate's supporters occupied central Mexico City for weeks. In Nigeria, losing presidential candidates routinely challenge results in court, as they did after 2023.
Corruption and legitimacy
Corruption, the misuse of public office for private gain, signals that the rules don't apply to the powerful, which eats away at legitimacy. Mexico and Nigeria both score poorly on Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, where higher scores mean less perceived corruption. Both have built anti-corruption bodies: Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission began work in 2003, and Mexico created a National Anti-Corruption System in 2015–16. Critics in both countries argue these bodies are used selectively against opponents, which shows how anti-corruption campaigns can themselves become political.
Worked examples
Try each one yourself first, then open the solution.
- Example 1
Explaining performance legitimacy
Explain how economic performance helps sustain the Chinese Communist Party's legitimacy, and identify one risk of relying on it.
Show the solutionHide the solution
- Step 1: Define the idea: performance legitimacy means people accept a government because it delivers results, not because they chose it in elections.
- Step 2: Apply it: since market reforms began in 1978, fast growth has raised incomes and lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, giving many citizens a reason to accept party rule.
- Step 3: Name the risk: if growth slows or unemployment rises, the main reason for support weakens, and the regime has no electoral mandate to fall back on.
Answer: Rising living standards give citizens a reason to accept party rule without elections, but that support could weaken if growth slows, since the party lacks an electoral source of legitimacy.
Common mistakes
- Treating repression as a source of legitimacy. Repression can keep a regime in power, but it doesn't make people believe it has the right to rule.
- Reading low turnout as proof of illegitimacy without considering other causes like insecurity or boycotts.
- Giving vague evidence like “China is rich.” Name the reform era, the anti-corruption campaign or a specific policy.
On the exam
- Expect questions that pair a policy with legitimacy, such as how a social program or anti-corruption drive builds support. Explain the link step by step.
- When data on turnout or trust appears, describe the pattern, then connect it to legitimacy with care.
Connected topics
Videos
Check yourself
4 questions on 1.9 Sustaining Legitimacy. Pick an answer to see if you got it, and why.
Since the economic reforms that began in 1978, China's economy has grown rapidly, and hundreds of millions of people have moved out of extreme poverty. Party leaders often point to this record when they explain why the Communist Party should continue to rule.
Scholars note, however, that growth has slowed since the early 2010s, and that a regime whose support rests on rising living standards may need other sources of support if growth falters.
Secondary-style passage written for this practice set
The passage describes which source of legitimacy?
If growth continues to slow, which strategy would the Party most likely rely on more to sustain its legitimacy?
Which of the following developments is most likely to weaken a government's legitimacy?
Iran's regime draws legitimacy from both religion and elections. Which feature reflects the electoral side?
0 of 4 answered