%0 Journal Article
%T Iran under Ahmadinejad: populism and its malcontents
%J International affairs
%D 2008
%A Ansari, Ali
%V 84
%N 4
%P 683-700
%X This article assesses the rise of President Ahmadinejad from the perspective of the Weberian concept of charismatic authority. It argues that in re-engaging with an authoritative structure founded on charisma, the hard line political establishment of the Islamic Republic have returned to a traditional form of autocratic power which is inherently unstable. The cycle of distress and enthusiasm from which it grows generates a momentum and ideological polarization which the leaders of the Islamic Republic may find increasingly difficult to escape.<p />
%G 
%I John Wiley and Sons
%@ 0020-5850
%U http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2346.2008.00732.x