Crony Democracy is a sham political system that maintains the outward appearance of a democracy—elections, parties, a constitution—but where real power, wealth, and policy are shaped by a tight, corrupt network of connections between the ruling political class and their favored business elites.
In a crony democracy, your success depends less on merit, public support, or fair competition, and more on who you know, who you’ve bribed, or which politician you went to school with. The government uses regulation, state contracts, and public resources to reward allies and punish opponents, while keeping up a theatrical performance of legitimate democratic process for the voters and the international community.
In a crony democracy, your success depends less on merit, public support, or fair competition, and more on who you know, who you’ve bribed, or which politician you went to school with. The government uses regulation, state contracts, and public resources to reward allies and punish opponents, while keeping up a theatrical performance of legitimate democratic process for the voters and the international community.
Don't be fooled by the elections here; it's a total crony democracy. The president's cousin got the billion-dollar infrastructure contract, his major donor's company pays no taxes, and the opposition can't even get airtime on TV.
by AbzuInExile January 24, 2026
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