Authoritarianism and Democracy are two orthogonal things. Authoritarianism describes the degree to which the state regulates the affairs of its subjects. Democr

Authoritarianism and Democracy are two orthogonal things. Authoritarianism describes the degree to which the state regulates the affairs of its subjects. Democracy is a process by which decisions are made. You can be in a authoritarian democracy, say Iran which is a theocratic republic which obtained that status through a legit revolution, overthrowing what used to be a dictatorial, but fairly liberal society under the Shah.