legitimacy

The more Congress polarizes among its members on a party-line basis, the less the public is likely to trust the legitimacy of its opposition to a president.

I also questioned the legitimacy of the adverts.

He accused them of "repeatedly undermining the legitimacy of the government and acting against the state's constitutional order."

Numerous rights groups lobbied the 11-nation bloc to hold back monitors, lest they lend legitimacy to a vote which they say is critically flawed.

Because these gangs are self-serving and lack political affiliation, they hold little legitimacy among Gazans.