Possibly one of the most bipartisan experiences throughout history, is learning about a politician and going: “Now how did they get elected?”
It’s not an unique experience to question how someone could have risen to power. We can look at both the politicians of the past and the people who currently hold office, and debate how exactly they got there. Especially when their rhetoric is illogical and rooted in hate. And while it’s easy to just assume everyone who voted for them believes the same, that would be an oversimplification of the situation. To really understand how they got power, it’s important to understand power itself.
In the early twentieth century, sociologist and political economist Max Weber defined power as the ability that an actor (be it an individual or organization) would be able to carry out their own goals regardless of resistance. To narrow down his broad definition, he identified power in three interconnected forms: rational-legal, traditional, and charismatic.
Rational-legal authority is based on the brief that a leader genuinely has the power to issue rules based on a legal system. In contrast, traditional authority stems from custom or tradition and often exists solely because people have accepted it has always been there. It’s the driving force behind monarchies, but also perpetuates social dynamics like the patriarchy.
Charismatic authority describes how individuals can garner power through personality, ideology, or as the name states, charisma. We see it exist in high schools with the idea of popularity and in social movements through the “faces” of an organization. While traditional and rational-legal authority relies on some sort of pre-appointed system to imbue power, charismatic authority relies solely on the individual who seeks it. So naturally it’s the most common. Moreover, it’s how most politicians get their start.
Through campaigns and debates, politicians take on different methods to appeal to voters. As charismatic authority grows, an emotional connection between the politician and citizens emerges– a bond that translates into votes when the time comes.
When a politician takes office, their charismatic authority turns into rational-legal authority. It takes their power from a social relationship to a defined position, and gives them far more power to exercise itself. In the most extreme cases, this rational-legal authority can turn into traditional authority, if the politician takes steps to form a totalitarian state.
So when it comes to politics, this is exactly where the danger of charismatic authority lies.
While countries across the world are rapidly becoming more divided in terms of the political right and left, there remains a middle ground of voters who aren’t vocally aligning themselves with either side. So when it comes to politicians who align themselves with hateful ideology, it’s not the hate that draws the middle in, but rather the policies they promote. It shouldn’t be surprising that politicians who spew hate talk equally about their plans for the economy. Nearly every questionable politician plays on some idea like this. It is exactly how they tip the power in their favor. So why do bad people get elected? It’s because something they said sounded good. It is the universal similarity among some of the worst people who have held office, but it’s also completely avoidable. It may feel easier to overlook hateful beliefs and questionable ideology for the sake of the few things that you think will directly benefit you, but in the long run it puts people in office who will one day become sore spots for nations. It’s easy to look back and wonder what a politician did to get in power, but it goes without saying, for the sake of peace and stability, it’s far more important to recognize these things in real time. It is crucial to understand that politicians will play into your support to only further their own agenda in the end. Like Weber shows, power can morph from one form to another, so it’s important to make sure only the right people have it in the first place.