Authoritarian Right believes that strong executive authority is necessary to maintain order, preserve tradition, and enable prosperity. Democracy, in this view, tends toward chaos—mob rule, short-term thinking, and the erosion of standards. Effective governance requires concentrated power in capable hands, insulated from popular passions and special interests.
This strain draws on older traditions of political thought: throne-and-altar conservatism, the authoritarian strands within fascism (though most Authoritarian Right adherents reject fascism's totalitarian ambitions), Lee Kuan Yew's Singapore model, and contemporary "illiberal democracy" as practiced in Hungary or admired in observers of China's governance capacity.
The critique of liberal democracy is practical, not ideological: democracies struggle with long-term planning, pander to voters, accumulate unsustainable debts, and allow social decay in the name of individual rights. Authoritarian systems—Singapore, China, sometimes historical examples like Pinochet's Chile—demonstrate that prosperity and order can coexist with restricted political freedom.
Unlike Authoritarian Left, this strain accepts market economics and private property—indeed, sees economic freedom as more important than political freedom. The state should be strong enough to maintain order, enforce contracts, and protect property, but should not manage the economy in detail. Markets create wealth; authority preserves civilization.
At roughly 2% of the population, Authoritarian Right is a minority view in America but more common globally. It appeals to those frustrated with democratic dysfunction, worried about social decay, or simply convinced that strong leadership produces better outcomes than electoral competition. Critics see authoritarianism; supporters see realism about human nature and effective governance.