A Natural Experiment in Political Decentralization

Local Institutions and Citizens' Political Engagement in Uruguay

Bibliographic Data

ID2959829
AuthorsFernando Rosenblatt (0000-0002-6033-3793, Diego Portales University), Germán Bidegain (0000-0002-4007-4843, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile), Felipe Monestier (0000-0002-1288-235X, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile), Rafael Piñeiro Rodríguez (0000-0003-3661-2343), Rafael Piñeiro-Rodríguez (0000-0002-1703-2637, Universidad de la República de Uruguay)
Year2015
Volume57
Issue2
Pages91-110
Publication date2015-01-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueLatin American Politics and Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1531-426X • E-ISSN: 1548-2456
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1111/j.1548-2456.2015.00268.x
OpenAlexW2135752150
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited36

The potential democratizing effect of political decentralization reforms has been a matter of substantial theoretical and empirical debate. This article analyzes the effect of local democratic institution building on the political attitudes and behavior of citizens living in small towns in Uruguay. More specifically, using a natural experiment design, this research seeks to establish the causal impact of recently established elections of local authorities on individuals' political engagement. It develops a comparative case study analyzing the consequences of this institutional innovation in two towns. It shows that individuals from the town where citizens have the opportunity to elect their local authorities have more positive attitudes toward politics than those from the town without such elections

Decentralization · Democracy · Geography · Institution · Natural experiment · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Law · Local Government Finance and Decentralization · Politics and Society in Latin America · Public Administration

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