Democratic Backsliding and Public Administration: How Populists in Government Transform State Bureaucracies

Liberal democracy is at risk. Its hallmark institutions – political pluralism, separation of powers, and rule of law—are coming under pressure, as authoritarian sentiment is growing around the globe. While liberal-democratic backsliding features prominently in social science scholarship, especially the branches concerned with political parties and political behavior, public administration research lags behind. However, without considering illiberal approaches towards the executive, efforts of actual and aspiring authoritarians remain only partly understood. State bureaucracies are, after all, important instruments of power. This timely and important volume addresses the administrative implications of liberal-democratic backsliding. It studies public administrations as objects and subjects in the context of illiberal dynamics. For this purpose, the volume brings together an international group of scholars to analyze authoritarian tendencies in several countries. The contributions combine theoretical with empirical work, providing the first comparative perspective on an overlooked aspect of one of the most important contemporary political trends.

Table of Contents:
1. Introduction: Populists, Democratic Backsliding and Public Administration Michael W. Bauer, B. Guy Peters, Jon Pierre, Kutsal Yesilkagit, Stefan Becker; 2. Incomplete Democratization, System Transformations, and the Civil Service: A Case Study on the Weimar Republic and the Nazi Regime in Germany Bastian Strobel, Sylvia Veit; 3. Resilience without Resistance: Public Administration under Mutating Populisms in Office in Italy Fabrizio Di Mascio, Alessandro Natalini, Edoardo Ongaro; 4. Illiberal Transformation of Government Bureaucracy in a Fragile Democracy. The Case of Hungary György Hajnal, Zsolt Boda; 5. Public Administration in Poland in the Times of Populist Drift Stanisław Mazur; 6. Technocratic-Populist Mayors and Public Administration in Three European Cities Eliška Drápalová; 7. Populism and the Deep State: The Attack on Public Service under Trump Donald Moynihan; 8. 'Doublespeak Populism' and Public Administration: The Case of Mexico Mauricio I. Dussauge-Laguna; 9. Venezuela: Sidelining Public Administration under a Revolutionary-Populist Regime Wolfgang Muno, Héctor G. Briceño M; 10. Working, Shirking, and Sabotage in Times of Democratic Backsliding: An Experimental Study in Brazil João Victor Guedes-Neto, B. Guy Peters; 11. Public Administration: How to Respond to Populism and Democratic Backsliding Gerry Stoker; 12.Conclusions: Public Administration under the Rule of Democratic Backsliders Jon Pierre, B. Guy Peters, Michael W. Bauer, Kutsal Yesilkagit, Stefan Becker.

About the Author :
Michael W. Bauer holds the Chair of Public Administration at the School of Transnational Governance of the European University Institute, San Domenico die Fiesole. B. Guy Peters is Maurice Falk Professor of Government at the University of Pittsburgh and founding President of the International Public Policy Association. Jon Pierre is Professor of Political Science at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and Adjunct Professor at the University of Pittsburgh. Kutsal Yesilkagit is Professor of Public Administration at Leiden University. Stefan Becker is Researcher at the Thünen Institute, the Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forestry and Fisheries, Germany.

Review :
'Populists, Democratic Backsliding and Public Administration is an impressive documentation of populist politicians worldwide and their anti-Democratic efforts that rely on politicizing the civil service.  Weaving historical cases with astute analysis of several contemporary national cases, the book clearly documents the perils of discounting or dismissing bureaucratic expertise. It is must reading for anyone interested in 21st century governance, the challenges to the administrative state, and the future of democracy.' Kenneth J. Meier, Distinguished Scholar in Residence, American University 'In this ground-breaking volume linking the study of public administration to that of populism this volume not only move both areas onwards but comes into the real world issues of democracy, democratic backsliding, illiberalism and the practice of populism in power. Through comparative and authoritative cases studies at national, local and city government levels this volume essentially provides a road-map of what populists do in power and how they do it.' Paul Taggart, Professor of Politics, University of Sussex