Paper short abstract:

Pakistani state officials who prioritise kin obligations are able to count on their supporters to promote their virtue, and ensure support at critical regime transitions which provides a tool for establishing and maintaining public legitimacy.

Paper long abstract:

The Pakistan state has confronted persistent crises of legitimacy since independence. Current calls for radical transformation of governance models from new political and religious organisation are driven by widespread frustration with the ways in which decisions are taken by government officials and the perception of unfair distribution of state resources. Despite repeated calls for a Pakistan Spring, the state appears to function as it always has and continues to draw support from broad and distributed segments of the population. So while the crises are not fabricated, the state, through its elected representatives, appointed executives and civil service organisations has sufficient popular support to justifiably claim a legitimate mandate to govern. There are multiple sources for the production and maintenance of such support, but an important one is found in kinship relations.  Pervasive relationships of familial mutual support and reciprocity, rather than being perceived as corrupt, are necessary proof of the virtue of state officeholders. Satisfying kinship obligations allows politicians and civil servants to maintain respectable reputations as legitimate wielders of state power. Using data from the elected officials in the National and Provincial Assemblies of Pakistan and Punjab, I argue that individuals who prioritise kin obligations over 'impartial' decision making and resource distribution, are able to count on their supporters to promote their virtue, and ensure material and symbolic support at critical regime transitions which provides a powerful tool for establishing and maintaining public legitimacy over time.