Contesting Authority: Non-State Actors, Hybrid Threats, and the Transformation of Political Order

The contemporary political landscape is witnessing a profound transformation in the nature and distribution of authority. While the state remains the primary actor in international politics, an increasingly diverse range of non-state actors now exercise significant influence over governance, security, public opinion, and political decision-making. Armed groups, private military and security companies, transnational criminal organizations, technology corporations, digital platforms, civil society organizations, and other non-state actors increasingly shape political outcomes at local, national, and global levels. At the same time, hybrid threats—including cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, economic coercion, and foreign influence operations—have blurred the boundaries between war and peace, domestic and international politics, and public and private authority. Together, these developments challenge conventional understandings of sovereignty, legitimacy, and political order.
This panel invites scholars to examine how authority is contested, shared, and reconfigured in an era of geopolitical uncertainty and democratic transformation. Rather than focusing exclusively on security, the panel seeks to explore the broader political implications of the growing influence of non-state actors and hybrid threats on governance, state capacity, democratic accountability, and the evolving international order. Contributions employing theoretical, comparative, or empirical approaches are particularly welcome, including analyses from both the Global North and the Global South.
The panel encourages interdisciplinary dialogue on how emerging forms of political authority are reshaping governance across different contexts. Particular attention will be given to the interaction between state and non-state actors, the diffusion of power across public and private spheres, and the implications of these transformations for democratic governance, conflict management, and international cooperation. By bringing together diverse perspectives, the panel aims to advance new conceptual and analytical frameworks for understanding political order in the twenty-first century.