The concept of "legitimacy": what does this mean?

In recent times, cases have become more frequent when the peoples of these or those countries express their distrust of the authorities of their states, while in the press such terms as "legitimacy" and "illegitimacy" appear. For many, it remains unclear what these concepts mean.

Legitimacy: what is it?

The term "legitimacy" comes from the Latin word legitimus, which translates as "lawful, consistent with the laws, legitimate." In political science, this term refers to the voluntary recognition by the people of state power of the right to make decisions affecting the entire people. In the scientific literature one can find complete answers to the questions: "The term" legitimacy "- what is it? How to understand the expression" the legitimacy of power "?" So, this is a politico-legal term, which means an approving attitude of citizens of the country to the institutions of power. Naturally, in such countries the supreme power is legitimate. However, when this term first came into use, it meant something completely different. It was in the early 19th century in France, during the usurpation of power by Napoleon. A group of French people wanted to restore the king's only legitimate authority. This desire of monarchists was called the term "legitimacy". That this corresponds more to the meaning of the Latin word legitimus, immediately becomes obvious. At the same time, the Republicans began to use this term as recognition of this state and the authority established on its territory by other states. In modern terms, legitimacy is the voluntary acceptance of power by the popular masses, who constitute the majority. And this approval is primarily due to the moral assessment: their ideas of nobility, justice, conscience, decency, etc. To win the trust of the masses, the authorities try to inspire them with the idea that all its decisions and actions are aimed at the good of the people.

Types of power legitimacy

The great German sociologist and philosopher Max Weber introduced the typology of the legitimacy of power. According to it, there is a traditional, charismatic and rational legitimacy.

• Traditional legitimacy. What it is? In some states, the popular masses blindly believe that power is sacred, and it is inevitable and necessary to obey it. In such societies, power is given the status of a tradition. Naturally, such a picture is observed in those states in which the leadership of the country is inherited (kingdom, emirate, sultanate, principality, etc.).
• Charismatic legitimacy is formed on the basis of people's belief in the exceptional dignity and authority of one or another political leader. In such countries, the formation of the so-called personality cult is possible . Thanks to the charisma of the leader, the people begin to believe the entire political system that reigns in the country. People are emotionally enthusiastic and ready to obey him in everything. Usually this type of leader is formed at the dawn of revolutions, the change of political power, and so on.
• Rational or democratic legitimacy is formed due to the recognition by the people of justice of the actions and decisions of persons in power. This type is found in complex societies. In this case, legitimacy has a normative basis.

Legitimacy of the State

The idea of a legitimate state comes from two concepts: power and legitimacy. A state of this type, in fact, has every right to demand obedience from its citizens, since in these societies the rule of law is in the first place. Consequently, regardless of the personalities of individual members of the government, the people must obey the laws in force in the given state. If citizens are not satisfied with these laws and they do not want to obey them, then they have several ways out: emigration (departure from the state to another state), overthrow of power (revolution), disobedience, which is fraught with punishment provided for in the legislation of this country. The legitimate state is a mechanism for transferring from one generation to another the right to choose.