Thank you Naghmeh for this wonderfully illuminating piece! The primary sources are so vivid, hadn’t seem them before. I want to echo your point about the irreducible ambiguity of referenda in the immediate wake of regime change. Most voters see it as a stamp of approval for the change, not a considered choice among real options. That acclamatory function is very useful for the new or would-be rulers. They use it to claim popular backing for their right to rule, and to tout the illegitimacy of their opponents. See Egypt 2011.
Excellent analysis. I wish mainstream media would engage with you to share this perspective with the world; the masses don’t understand this about Shah Koochoolou
Thank you Naghmeh for this wonderfully illuminating piece! The primary sources are so vivid, hadn’t seem them before. I want to echo your point about the irreducible ambiguity of referenda in the immediate wake of regime change. Most voters see it as a stamp of approval for the change, not a considered choice among real options. That acclamatory function is very useful for the new or would-be rulers. They use it to claim popular backing for their right to rule, and to tout the illegitimacy of their opponents. See Egypt 2011.
Thank you! We should do a roundtable on comparative referendums!
Excellent analysis. I wish mainstream media would engage with you to share this perspective with the world; the masses don’t understand this about Shah Koochoolou