Inside Russian Authoritarianism: Multi-Level Legitimation and Institutional Adaptation

Session Submission Type: Panel

Brief Description

This panel examines contemporary Russian authoritarianism by analyzing legitimation
strategies and institutional adaptation across multiple governance levels. Our speakers
investigate three critical dimensions of authoritarian governance: international legitimation,
parliamentary activity, and regional ideology-making. The first paper examines how Russia
strategically combines rhetorical and institutional mechanisms to resist the International Criminal
Court while reinforcing domestic legitimacy. The second paper develops a structural-institutional
theory of parliamentary activity under electoral authoritarianism, challenging conventional views
of rubber-stamp legislatures through analysis of the Russian State Duma. The third paper
explores how leaders in ethnic republics navigate competing pressures to maintain stability
while adapting regime wartime narratives for local audiences. Together, these papers illuminate
how the authoritarian regime in Russia sustains power through sophisticated legitimation
strategies and institutional adaptation across international, national, and regional arenas,
advancing scholarly understanding of authoritarian resilience.

Sub Unit

• Politics/Law

Chair

• Dima Kortukov, U of Alabama

Papers

• Authoritarian Legitimation through Russia’s Rhetorical and Institutional Resistance to the International Criminal Court - Yuliya Zabyelina, U of Alabama

• On Rubber Stamps and Mad Printers: Authoritarian Parliamentary Activity and the Case of the Russian State Duma - Julian G. Waller, George Washington U

• Ideological Legitimation in Wartime Russia: Political Communication in Russia's Ethnic Republics - Adam Charles Lenton, Wake Forest U

Discussant

• Dima Kortukov, U of Alabama