Alberto Vergara
Biographic Data
| ID | 3817858 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Alberto Vergara |
| GIVEN NAMES | Alberto |
| FAMILY NAME | Vergara |
| SIGNATURE | VERGARA A |
| AFFILIATIONS | Pacific University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-6156-6791 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 14 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 38 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 13 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 1 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2007 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
From Washington to Madrid
This article contrasts the ways in which the neoliberal Latin American right of the 1990s and today’s new reactionary right have interpreted and used the past. Scholars have studied several dimensions of this transformation. However, the role played by the use and abuse of national histories in this shift has not been carefully examined. While the neoliberal movement embraced universalist market principles and sought to break with the past, today…
The Bukele Model
Decades of mano dura —or "iron fist"—experiments in Latin America suggest that hard-on-crime policies are likely to fail. Yet in El Salvador, a crackdown launched by President Nayib Bukele in 2022 successfully dismantled the country's gangs, turning "the Bukele model" into one of the most influential political brands in the region. This essay argues that this crackdown succeeded not only because of its intensity, but also because of the (unintend…
Peru
Peru‘s democracy is dying. The country made international headlines after a cycle of political instability that left behind seven presidents in seven years, a failed coup, and 60 people dead after violent protests and brutal repression by the government. However, unlike the usual stories about democracy falling prey to the military or a popular strongman dismantling it from within, Peru‘s democracy is dying not from power concentration but from p…
An Eruption of History in Peru’s Bicentenary
Pedro Castillo’s election as president of Peru in 2021 unleashed an unexpected series of historical debates in the bicentenary year of Peru’s independence. A left-wing union leader and rural teacher, Castillo was confronted by a stubborn conservative opposition that denounced his alleged communism, in a renewal of ideological confrontation that raised more questions about Peru’s nation-building process. This article argues that, paradoxically, th…
Democracy in the Bullring
Comparative analysis of the antibullfighting agenda in Bogotá, Lima, and Quito sheds light on the relation between new social movements and left parties. It suggests that, although a social movement is important to the visibility of the agenda, the key variable in achieving a ban on bullfighting in the three capitals has been a decisive left leadership that is not shy about confrontation with traditional elites. Un análisis comparativo de la agen…
Heat But Little Light
Peruvians are bitterly divided over how—or even whether—the terrible violence that engulfed the country in the 1980s and '90s should be remembered
Politics after Violence
Presidents without Roots
Peru's posttransition democracy presents a paradox: presidents have remained unpopular despite presiding over a period in which democratic institutions strengthened and the economy grew rapidly. O'Donnell's work on delegative democracy suggests that the Peruvian paradox results from weak vertical accountability. Since Peru's return to democracy, parties and civil society have been too weak to hold elected leaders accountable. Furthermore, preside…
Virtue, Fortune, and Failure in Peru
The downfall of Peruvian president Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (PPK) in March 2018—less than two years into his five-year term—owed much to the poor decisions of this right-wing technocrat, whom a stroke of fortune had brought to the presidency. Yet it also reflected the broader dynamics of Peruvian politics, in which a “business model” that sees places on party tickets rented out each season has inhibited long-term planning and cooperation. After narr…
Continuity by Surprise
In the first decade of the twenty-first century, Latin America experienced a so-called left turn that sought either to reform or eliminate the neoliberal institutions established during the 1980s and 1990s. However, although Peru has electoral, economic, and social processes similar to those of its neighbors, the neoliberal institutions established in Peru by the 1993 Constitution remain firmly in place. This article aims to understand the mechan…
Latin America’s Problems of Success
This concluding essay proposes a reassessment of Guillermo O’Donnell’s treatment of horizontal and vertical accountability in his conceptualization of “delegative democracy.” In a situation that parallels that of the 1990s, today several Latin American de
Peru Since Fujimori
Despite the improvement of democratic institutions in Peru during the last fifteen years, Peruvians are strongly dissatisfied with democracy in their country. We argue this dissatisfaction results from weak vertical accountability. In our article, we show how Peru has regained meaningful horizontal accountability since the authoritarian years of the 1990s, but has struggled to develop complementary channels of vertical accountability beyond elect…
Forthcoming in Volume 54 Number 1
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. As you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button
Ni amnésicos ni irracionales
Peru
Peru‘s democracy is dying. The country made international headlines after a cycle of political instability that left behind seven presidents in seven years, a failed coup, and 60 people dead after violent protests and brutal repression by the government. However, unlike the usual stories about democracy falling prey to the military or a popular strongman dismantling it from within, Peru‘s democracy is dying not from power concentration but from p…
The Bukele Model
Decades of mano dura —or "iron fist"—experiments in Latin America suggest that hard-on-crime policies are likely to fail. Yet in El Salvador, a crackdown launched by President Nayib Bukele in 2022 successfully dismantled the country's gangs, turning "the Bukele model" into one of the most influential political brands in the region. This essay argues that this crackdown succeeded not only because of its intensity, but also because of the (unintend…
Peru Since Fujimori
Despite the improvement of democratic institutions in Peru during the last fifteen years, Peruvians are strongly dissatisfied with democracy in their country. We argue this dissatisfaction results from weak vertical accountability. In our article, we show how Peru has regained meaningful horizontal accountability since the authoritarian years of the 1990s, but has struggled to develop complementary channels of vertical accountability beyond elect…
Latin America’s Problems of Success
This concluding essay proposes a reassessment of Guillermo O’Donnell’s treatment of horizontal and vertical accountability in his conceptualization of “delegative democracy.” In a situation that parallels that of the 1990s, today several Latin American de
Presidents without Roots
Peru's posttransition democracy presents a paradox: presidents have remained unpopular despite presiding over a period in which democratic institutions strengthened and the economy grew rapidly. O'Donnell's work on delegative democracy suggests that the Peruvian paradox results from weak vertical accountability. Since Peru's return to democracy, parties and civil society have been too weak to hold elected leaders accountable. Furthermore, preside…
Ni amnésicos ni irracionales
Forthcoming in Volume 54 Number 1
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. As you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button
Continuity by Surprise
In the first decade of the twenty-first century, Latin America experienced a so-called left turn that sought either to reform or eliminate the neoliberal institutions established during the 1980s and 1990s. However, although Peru has electoral, economic, and social processes similar to those of its neighbors, the neoliberal institutions established in Peru by the 1993 Constitution remain firmly in place. This article aims to understand the mechan…
Latin America’s Problems of Success
This concluding essay proposes a reassessment of Guillermo O’Donnell’s treatment of horizontal and vertical accountability in his conceptualization of “delegative democracy.” In a situation that parallels that of the 1990s, today several Latin American de
Peru Since Fujimori
Despite the improvement of democratic institutions in Peru during the last fifteen years, Peruvians are strongly dissatisfied with democracy in their country. We argue this dissatisfaction results from weak vertical accountability. In our article, we show how Peru has regained meaningful horizontal accountability since the authoritarian years of the 1990s, but has struggled to develop complementary channels of vertical accountability beyond elect…
Virtue, Fortune, and Failure in Peru
The downfall of Peruvian president Pedro Pablo Kuczynski (PPK) in March 2018—less than two years into his five-year term—owed much to the poor decisions of this right-wing technocrat, whom a stroke of fortune had brought to the presidency. Yet it also reflected the broader dynamics of Peruvian politics, in which a “business model” that sees places on party tickets rented out each season has inhibited long-term planning and cooperation. After narr…
Heat But Little Light
Peruvians are bitterly divided over how—or even whether—the terrible violence that engulfed the country in the 1980s and '90s should be remembered
Politics after Violence
Presidents without Roots
Peru's posttransition democracy presents a paradox: presidents have remained unpopular despite presiding over a period in which democratic institutions strengthened and the economy grew rapidly. O'Donnell's work on delegative democracy suggests that the Peruvian paradox results from weak vertical accountability. Since Peru's return to democracy, parties and civil society have been too weak to hold elected leaders accountable. Furthermore, preside…
Democracy in the Bullring
Comparative analysis of the antibullfighting agenda in Bogotá, Lima, and Quito sheds light on the relation between new social movements and left parties. It suggests that, although a social movement is important to the visibility of the agenda, the key variable in achieving a ban on bullfighting in the three capitals has been a decisive left leadership that is not shy about confrontation with traditional elites. Un análisis comparativo de la agen…
An Eruption of History in Peru’s Bicentenary
Pedro Castillo’s election as president of Peru in 2021 unleashed an unexpected series of historical debates in the bicentenary year of Peru’s independence. A left-wing union leader and rural teacher, Castillo was confronted by a stubborn conservative opposition that denounced his alleged communism, in a renewal of ideological confrontation that raised more questions about Peru’s nation-building process. This article argues that, paradoxically, th…
Peru
Peru‘s democracy is dying. The country made international headlines after a cycle of political instability that left behind seven presidents in seven years, a failed coup, and 60 people dead after violent protests and brutal repression by the government. However, unlike the usual stories about democracy falling prey to the military or a popular strongman dismantling it from within, Peru‘s democracy is dying not from power concentration but from p…
The Bukele Model
Decades of mano dura —or "iron fist"—experiments in Latin America suggest that hard-on-crime policies are likely to fail. Yet in El Salvador, a crackdown launched by President Nayib Bukele in 2022 successfully dismantled the country's gangs, turning "the Bukele model" into one of the most influential political brands in the region. This essay argues that this crackdown succeeded not only because of its intensity, but also because of the (unintend…
From Washington to Madrid
This article contrasts the ways in which the neoliberal Latin American right of the 1990s and today’s new reactionary right have interpreted and used the past. Scholars have studied several dimensions of this transformation. However, the role played by the use and abuse of national histories in this shift has not been carefully examined. While the neoliberal movement embraced universalist market principles and sought to break with the past, today…
Political science (12 works) · Law (8 works) · Politics (8 works) · Politics and Society in Latin America (8 works) · Democracy (5 works) · Political economy (5 works) · Sociology (5 works) · Economics (4 works) · Law (4 works) · Public Administration (4 works)