By Ryan McMaken
Mises.org
February 7, 2026
Whenever a new US president is sworn in, media pundits and court historians gush about the supposed "peaceful transfer of power" that is taking place. This has become a key tenet of the mythology and ideology surrounding democracy-that governing elites willfully abandon their control over the machinery of the state in response to election outcomes.
Indeed, this narrative about democracy is absolutely foundational to the perceived legitimacy of democracy.