为政治制度赋予合法性的方式多种多样：自由民主制只是近来的一种创新而已；通常由君权神授为依托的世袭君主制，曾在历史上大行其道；而某些现代的独裁者（如罗伯特·穆加贝 ） ， 则是以民族解放斗士这一资历作为其统治的依据。
Hereditary monarchy, often backed by divine authority, has worked in the past. And some modern autocrats, such as Robert Mugabe, have been bolstered by their credentials as national freedom fighters.