O burocrata público como ator político -administrativo no contexto da crise da democracia: reflexões iniciais

The objective of this essay is to reflect on the political-administrative role of the Public Administration Bureaucrat in the context of the crisis of democracy. The public bureaucrat, here synonymous with public servant, is not understood as a neutral, purely professional actor, but rather as a figure in Administration, who is influenced by Politics, and vice-versa. Their actions may be self-interested, aimed at the public good, or strictly follow the political order in accordance with the legal framework, regardless of the results of such order. This perspective, once deepened, will be constrated with the context of the crisis of democracy. To reflect on the situation of public bureaucrats in the context of the crisis of democracy, we use, in an adapted way, indicator to analyze whether democratically elected governments adopt authoritarian initiatives, established by Levitsky and Siblatt (2018). From them, we discuss the role of the bureaucrat in this political context. As a conclusion, it can be seen that they can contribute to resistance against positions that seek to undermine democratic procedures in Public Administration. At the same time, it is clear that such action must have the support of other actors within the State itself to counteract authoritarian initiatives on the part of the Executive.