Hybrid regime
Topic: Democracy: Forms of Government, Principles and Outcomes · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
A hybrid regime mixes democratic and authoritarian features. Elections may be held, but they often have serious problems, and courts or the media may not be independent. It is one of the four categories in the EIU Democracy Index. It sits between "flawed democracy" and "authoritarian".
Example
A country may hold regular elections while jailing opposition leaders and controlling the press. That country has some democratic features and some authoritarian ones, so the EIU would call it a hybrid regime. (India is rated a "flawed democracy", not a hybrid regime.)
Don't confuse with
- Electoral autocracy: this is V-Dem's similar category from a different index, defined by shortfalls in free expression, free association and clean elections.
- Flawed democracy: in this EIU category, elections are free and fair, with weaknesses elsewhere.
Related concepts
- V-Dem Democracy Report
- EIU Democracy Index
- Freedom in the World
- World Press Freedom Index
- Electoral autocracy
- Illiberal democracy
- Democratic backsliding