Egypt’s New Authoritarian Republic Hardcover – July 22, 2025

“Tells a coherent story of Sisi’s consolidation of his rule through the creation of a police state... while presiding over an accelerating economic crisis, successive foreign policy failures, and the erosion of state social provision that was the backbone of the first decades of the independent Egyptian state.” ―Neil Hicks, Rowaq Aarabi Egyptian President Abd al Fattah el-Sisi has sought to create a "New Republic," a stronger, more authoritarian state capable of positively transforming Egypt's polity, economy, society, and role in the region and the world. Thus far, success has been elusive. Why? And with what consequences for the regime and the country?These are the two questions at the heart of Egypt's New Authoritarian Republic. The authors effectively combine an overview of the means by which the Sisi government has increased its power with in-depth studies of how that power is exercised, arguing that the regime's performance is undermining rather than bolstering its legitimacy. CONTENTS: How New Is Egypt's New Republic?―A.-F. Mady.The New Republic: Old Vision, Unfulfilled Promises―E.E-D. Shahin.Using Soft Power to Achieve Legitimacy―M. Affan.Legitimacy Without Performance: Education as Example―B.K. Rutherford.In Search of Religious Legitimacy: Reconfiguring the Relationship with Al-Azhar―M. Mohamed.Legitimacy Without Economic Growth―R. Springborg.Civil-Military Relations: Strategies for Regime Survival―A-F. Mady.The Police in Egypt's Counterrevolution―H. el-Hamalawy.Subordinating the Judiciary―W. Salem.Foreign Policy and the Decline of Regional Power―M. Darwich.Cross-Border Human Rights Activism―M. El Fegiery.Reflections on Egyptian Politics Since 2013: Ruler, Regime, and State―N.J. Brown.Sisi's Fateful Triangle―R. Springborg. Read more