Concept in Definition ABC

The word legitimacy is a word that can be used in many different situations that They can be related to political, judicial, economic, social or daily life aspects of the people.

Legitimacy comes from the Latin term I will legitimize, what does it mean to enforce the law

In this sense, then, legitimacy is to transform something into legitimate, into something that complies with what is imposed by the law. law and therefore it is considered a good for the whole of society according to its specific parameters.

Ultimately, legitimacy is a condition that something holds and that implies being adjusted to the current law. On the opposite side we find the illegitimate thing that is not presented in accordance with what the law dictates

The term legitimacy is taken mainly from the juridical and legal world in which it means that something, a situation, a circumstance, or a phenomenon, are correct and appropriate according to the parameters that the different systems of laws and regulations establish for each case. Thus, the legitimacy of an act or a process becomes present when, to carry out such an act or process, the pre-established norms are followed. Examples of this type of legitimacy can be the signing of employment contracts, business contracts, international agreements properly established according to the laws of

international right, etc.

Legitimacy can also be applied to political issues, especially when it comes to whether an official or ruler accesses his position legitimately. For this to be so, the individual or group of individuals in question must follow a number of procedures and rules whose ultimate goal is the proper organization of the political system in each region. In this way, a president who accedes to the government through agreed means, such as the popular vote in the case of democracies, but whoever does it in an authoritarian and illegal way is not.

Legitimacy in politics

Currently, legitimacy is a condition that implies acceptance by the community, if there were no such acceptance or consensus, there would be no legitimacy. Thus, this criterion assumes that dictatorships can exercise power and in effect govern, without However, the legitimacy of that government is totally null because it does not precisely have the permission of the community. The history politics of most of the countries that make up our planet shows us examples of this that we mentioned.

When a government has legitimacy, because, for example, it came to power through the institutional mechanisms in force and in accordance with the law, it will achieve consensus on the part of the citizenship and all the acts of government and decisions that it takes will be considered legitimate and of course will be respected and peace and social stability will reign.

Meanwhile, when this does not happen, when the government loses legitimacy due to some situation, governance will be in danger, because the public will begin to ignore the authority of the government and then it will have to opt for the rectification to return to the path or to step aside to be able to regain legitimacy through a new management.

Or failing that, there is a third alternative, the other path that is usually taken in these cases is that of coercion, although sooner or later the citizenry will rebel and power in this way cannot hold on. Dictatorships that came to power through a coup, in some moments in the past achieved in the beginning some legitimacy on the part of the government. The people, however, with the passing of time they showed their cruellest and authoritarian side and then, the society rebelled until it finally achieved its exit.

Legitimacy at the civil level

Finally, the term legitimacy is also used to refer to social ties such as parenthood, marriage, etc. These links can be found in different circumstances governed by law and to be considered legitimate they must have certain types of elements that ensure their legality (For example, in the case of recognizing a legitimate son, the father must prove his direct blood tie; or in the case of a marriage, it must verify the recognition of it before the law to be considered legitimate).

Issues in Legitimacy