Until the late 1990s most independent countries in the world were autocracies and even today -- in the age of democratization and democracy -- over 40 percent of all countries remain autocratic. Despite the historical dominance of this regime type, however, the vast majority of teaching and research in political science focuses on democratic politics. This course does not. It examines the various aspects of the politics in authoritarian regimes: their emergence and breakdown, the policy choices and institutions they adopt, leadership change, and the theories that explain these outcomes. Besides discussing recent work, we will use historical case studies and real-world statistical data in order to examine current cases.