Under many nondemocratic systems, good policy is bad politics, and bad policy helps leaders stay in office. The result is poorer performance in terms of economic growth.
About the Authors
Bruce Bueno de Mesquita
Bruce Bueno de Mesquita is senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.
The 1997 financial crisis undermined the argument for a putative “Asian-style democracy” that prioritized economic development over political liberalization. Yet recent electoral and other reforms have set the stage for…