The survivel of authoritarianism in Venezuela: institucional legacies and mixed strategies (2013-2017)

Abstract

Competitive authoritarianism has specific logics of change and stabilization, in which both international and domestic factors intervene. In the Venezuelan case, the authoritarian competitive regime established during the administration of Hugo Chávez (1999-2013) confronted an increasingly adverse political, economic and international environment since 2013. Nevertheless, instead of moving towards a democratic opening, under the leadership of Nicolás Maduro the regime has successfully turned towards a hegemonic authoritarianism. Based on the question of why the authoritarian regime of Maduro has survived in Venezuela? It is argued that, while the institutional, political and ideological legacy has been important, authoritarian survival has been the result of hybrid or mixed strategies applied by the ruling elite to adapt to a hostile environment, overcome opposition challenges and maximize the impact of institutional control.