Timothy Colton's Russi The Authoritarian Regime

In democratic governments, legislatures play vital roles to help maintain peace and prosperity and work along-side the country’s leaders. However, in authoritarian governments, legislatures serve more as a symbolic organization with little power and works for the country’s leader and does what he wants. The legislatures can be disbanded and convened anytime the authoritarian leader decides because in authoritarian government the leader’s word goes. There are many examples of this in Russian history and other authoritarian regimes such as in early European history. Legislatures in authoritarian governments have very little real political power and often serve to maintain political parties and help provide legitimacy for the authoritarian government. As seen in Timothy Colton’s book on Russia, the legislature of the Soviet Union was controlled by the authoritarian leader and was used to suppress criticism of the regime, maintain party strength through rigged elections, to gain legitimacy of the regime, and to insure the citizens of the regime followed the ideals of the party. There are many ways an authoritarian regime can control the legislature. In Colton’s book, the authoritarian regime maintains control over the legislature by threating and even killing opposition to the goals of leader, such as Stalin in the early 1900’s in the Soviet …show more content…
Authoritarian regimes also need legislatures in some instances. Legislatures can help create laws and provide legitimacy for the regime. There are both advantages and disadvantages to legislatures in an authoritarian regime depending on goals of a regime. There are many examples throughout Russian history that illustrates the needs for legislatures and how they are controlled by a authoritarian