During the late Medieval and Renaisance period, when Kings derived their right to rule from divine mandates, how did people view republics & elective monarchies? Were they seen as less legitimate than herditary monarchies?

For most of the medieval period, in Italy at least, republican governments could only guarantee an uneasy peace between dynasties, and at best institutionalized warfare. I have a very specific example of fighting consequential to Republican government here. However, other republics were seen as just as legitimate than monarchies; and at times even more so, as I described here.