John Polga-Hecimovich is an Associate Professor of Political Science at the United States Naval Academy, where he is also the Co-director of the Forum for Latin American Studies. His academic research focuses on the effects of political institutions on democratic stability, policymaking, and governance, with a focus on Latin America. He has a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh and an M.A. in Latin American Studies from the Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar, Ecuador. Outside of the classroom, he has given briefings to the U.S. State Department, the Defense Intelligence Agency, and U.S. Southern Command on issues related to Latin American politics, and he has served as electoral systems expert for the Organization of American States (OAS).

Raul Sanchez-Urribarri is an Associate Dean (Academic and International Partnerships) at the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, and Associate Professor of Crime, Justice and Legal Studies at the Department of Social Inquiry, La Trobe University, in Melbourne, Australia. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of South Carolina, an LL.M. from Cambridge University, and a Law degree from Universidad Católica Andres Bello, Venezuela. His research focuses on constitutionalism, judicial politics, and the rule of law in comparative perspective, with an emphasis on contexts of democratic deterioration and Venezuela in particular. He is a co-editor of Judicial Activism in Comparative Perspective (Peter Lang) and Informality and Courts (Edinburgh University Press).

Preface. 1. Introduction: Venezuela's Political Crisis and the Concept of Authoritarian Consolidation Part I. Domestic Factors 2. Coup-Proofing the Venezuelan Military: Maduro's Innovations in the Face of Adversity 3. Control Tools: Elections, Maduro's Authoritarianism, and Regime Survival 4. Authoritarian Capitalism in Venezuela: The Political Economy of Maduro's Disorderly Liberalization 5. One Step Forward, Two Steps Back: The Venezuelan Opposition under Maduro 6. Venezuela's (Un)Rule of Law under Nicolás Maduro 7. The Control of the Information Environment as a Pillar of Authoritarian Consolidation in Venezuela 8. Criminal Governance in the Post-Chávez Revolution in Times of Questioned Legitimacy 9. Can Decentralization Contribute to Authoritarian Consolidation?: Venezuela under Chávez and Maduro Part II. International Factors 10. The Nexus of Power: Autocratic International Cooperation and the Consolidation of Authoritarianism in Venezuela 11. The Maduro Doctrine: Foreign Policy Strategy and Regime Survival in Contemporary Venezuela 12. Circular Talks: Political Dialogue, Foreign Facilitation, and Authoritarian Learning in Venezuela 13. U.S. Foreign Policy, the Opposition, and the Maduro Government: Venezuela's Authoritarian Slide in Ten Episodes 14. Exit, Voice, Loyalty, and Hunger: The Instrumentalization of Emigration Under Nicolás Maduro 15. The Venezuelan Diaspora and Maduro's Authoritarian Consolidation Part III Critical Reflections 16. Evaluating Authoritarian Consolidation in Venezuela