Authoritarian rule is best characterized as rule by a. one person or a small group of people b. elected representatives chosen by the people c. the military d. the people

Authoritarian government is a form of government where there is a ruler or small group of rulers, and everybody blindly obeys them.

A

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Authoritarian rule is when a single leader or small group of leaders rule an area ex: country, kingdom etc. So the answer to your question is A because in Authoritarian rule everyone just obeys blindly and the leader is definitely not an elected official.