What are soft autocracies?

A soft autocracy is like a classroom where one kid is in charge, but no one fights about it, everyone just goes along.

Imagine you're in a school with 30 kids. Usually, the teacher picks someone to be the leader for a day. But in a soft autocracy, that same kid stays in charge for years, maybe even forever. No one argues or throws a fit; they just let that kid make all the decisions, like who gets to pick the game at recess or what song plays during lunch.

In a soft autocracy, the leader isn’t forced on people, they’re mostly accepted. It’s kind of like having a best friend who always knows what to do in games, and everyone just goes with it because it makes life easier.

Sometimes, the other kids might not even notice that one kid is always in charge, it feels natural, like how you know your favorite teacher will always let you be first in line. That’s how soft autocracies stay strong: no big fights or changes, just quiet agreement.