The end of Cuban exceptionalism has been much announced since 1989, but a decade and a half later state socialism on the island is still enduring. Transition studies have been criti-cized for focusing on success stories. Exploring the deviant case of Cuba’s “non-transition” from a...

For theories of political succession and charismatic authority, the almost half-century long rule of Fidel Castro presents an extraordinary test case since Fidel in July 2006 handed over power ‘temporarily’ to his deputy and brother Raúl. On the background of Max We-ber’s work on...

The ‘Cuban safety-valve theory’ explains sustained survival of Cuban socialism in part through the high levels of emigration, following Hirschman’s model of ‘exit’ undermining ‘voice’. The article argues that this remains insufficient in two important ways. Taking a closer look at...

While traditional theories of legitimacy have focused on the nation‐state, authoritarian regimes and democracies alike seek legitimation not only in the domestic realm but also from international sources. This paper argues that the degree to, and the form in, which they do so depend on the...