Legitimacy describes a shared belief in rightful authority rather than moral validity. What follows from this distinction when evaluating an authoritarian regime whose subjects actively endorse its rule?

C. The analyst must concede the regime possesses legitimate domination

Conflating legitimacy with moral rightness or formal legality confuses social facts with normative evaluation. Weberian legitimacy requires only that subjects believe the command is rightful, regardless of whether external observers find the order monstrous or non-democratic.