Gideon Rachman - A Era do Homem-Forte

We live in a new era, in which nationalist leaders have become a central element of global politics, emerging not only in authoritarian political regimes but also in the heart of liberal democracy. These are populist and conservative strongmen, with little tolerance for minorities, dissidents, and immigrants, who encourage personality cults and contempt for liberalism and state institutions.

Brexit and the election of Donald Trump in 2016 constitute a decisive milestone in this new nationalism, but this era began at the start of the millennium when Vladimir Putin assumed power in Russia. Since then, strongmen have risen to power in capitals as diverse as Beijing, Budapest, Brasília, and Washington.

Analyzing the trajectory of leaders such as Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Boris Johnson, and Jair Bolsonaro, Gideon Rachman, a Financial Times journalist who interviewed many strongmen, seeks to answer three central questions about the Strongman Era: When did this trend gain traction? What are its main characteristics? And why did this happen?