Delegitimation strips institutions of standing to persuade or govern

Evidence

Delegitimation is not the equivalent of opposing, discrediting, undercutting, or sowing mistrust (though all this is conspiracists’ handiwork as well). Delegitimation poses a unique threat to democracy: it rejects the meaning, value, and authority of democratic practices, institutions, and officials. Delegitimation is a process of falling away from the judgment that government has rightful authority. The people associated with these institutions, it is believed, no longer have standing to persuade or legislate, to reason or coerce, to lay claim to our consent or at least compliance. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 26

Categorization

• DEFINE: Sharply distinguishes delegitimation from ordinary opposition, mistrust, and discrediting—a clean conceptual distinction.
• XREF: Pairs with Weber’s legitimacy types and the ‘hegemony crisis’ claims from Hall (Essential Essays). — connects to: Delegitimation erodes democracy slowly rather than through crisis or coup — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 42; Delegitimation rejects knowledge institutions and opposition conventions wholesale. — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 87; Equivocal officeholders can delegitimize institutions without fully endorsing conspiracy claims — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying: The New…, 333 (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Delegitimation erodes democracy slowly rather than through crisis or coup #expands (0.85) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 42
• Equivocal officeholders can delegitimize institutions without fully endorsing conspiracy claims #exemplifies (0.80) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 333
• Delegitimation rejects knowledge institutions and opposition conventions wholesale. #complicates (0.75) — Russell Muirhead and Nancy L. Rosenblum, A Lot of People Are Saying, 87