Semi-authoritarian
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Semi-authoritarian is a classification of a mix between a democratic and an authoritarian state. According to Marina Ottaway, "They are ambiguous systems that combine rhetorical acceptance of liberal democracy, the existence of some formal democratic institutions, and political liberties with essentually illiberal or even authoritarian traits."
The demise of the socialist regimes in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union was hailed in the West as a sign that democracy, no longer confronted by competing ideologies, was bound to triumph throughout the world. The prediction has proven premature. Islamist ideologies are challenging democracy in the vast Muslim world. And political reform processes have resulted in a large number of semi-authoritarian regimes, but few consolidating democracies.
Semi-authoritarian regimes display some democratic and some authoritarian traits. They combine rhetorical acceptance of liberal democracy, the existence of some formal democratic institutions and respect for a limited sphere of civil and political liberties with essentially illiberal or even authoritarian tendencies. This ambiguous character, furthermore, is deliberate. Semi-authoritarian systems are not imperfect democracies struggling toward improvement and consolidation, but regimes determined to maintain the appearance of democracy without exposing themselves to the political risks free competition entails
Semi Authoritarianism in Russia