Populism in South America

Democratic Panacea or Pitfall

Datos Bibliográficos

ID2767809
AutoresRobert Nyenhuis (0000-0003-4742-5594, autor de correspondencia)
Año2019
Volumen78
Número3
Páginas717-739
Fecha de publicación2019-05-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAmerican Journal of Economics and Sociology (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0002-9246 • E-ISSN: 1536-7150
EditorialWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/ajes.12276
OpenAlexW2946173613
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas2
Referencias citadas46

Populism has become a buzz word in recent years, used widely by journalists, political pundits, and academics. Much of the discussion presents the global phenomenon as a recent one. However, one version or another has existed in South America for nearly a century. In this article, I put forth a political strategic definition of populism that includes an actor's political style, relationship with followers, political organization, and political history. Using this conceptualization, I score several presidential candidates' campaign behavior during recent elections, between the years 2011 and 2015. I also consider the democratic consequences of two of the continents' most visible and longest-serving populists, Evo Morales in Bolivia and Rafael Correa in Ecuador. I examine the change over time in both countrie's political systems regarding the respect for civil liberties and political rights, changes in citizens' attitudes towards the democratic quality of their respective countries, and the variation in socioeconomic inequality. I conclude with an assessment of each populist's democratic consequence and discuss potential for future research

Conceptualization · Democracy · Development economics · Economics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Populism · Presidential system · Sociology · Law · Media Influence and Politics · Politics and Society in Latin America · Populism, Right-Wing Movements