And that’s all because of Ezekiel, who is able to understand Negan’s tyrannical rule (and later, Rick’s no-nonsense approach) without changing up how he does things.
Unlike other locations, The Kingdom is a place where good times aren’t reserved for rare occasions, and its citizens have no trouble keeping hope alive, despite everything happening in the outside world.
At least not in ways that are obvious to anyone else.
King Ezekiel didn’t earn his title or his throne through any of the usual methods of a monarchy, but rather by being the driving force behind getting The Kingdom community up and running, using an old school as the central hub.