Democracy by Undemocratic Means
Elites, Political Pacts, and Regime Transition in Brazil
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6246777 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Frances Hagopian (Harvard University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 1990 |
| Volume | 23 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 147-170 |
| Publication date | 1990-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Comparative Political Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0010-4140 • E-ISSN: 1552-3829 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1177/0010414090023002001 |
| OpenAlex | W2018579142 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 68 |
| References cited | 16 |
Why has Brazil failed to develop strong democratic institutions, despite widespread opposition to authoritarianism and support for civilian rule in the 1980s? This article argues that the political pacts bargained by elites that made the regime transition possible limited the extension of democracy. By restoring to old regime elites many sources of their political power as the price for their support for democratization, political pacts left the military with a substantial degree of formal and informal power over civilians, preserved clientelism, and undermined the ability of political parties to transform themselves into genuine transmission belts for nonelite interests. The undemocratic character of the Brazilian state, as embodied by military autonomy, technocratic modes of policymaking, and executive dominance over the legislature, moreover, was reinforced by the defeat of parliamentarism by the constituent assembly in 1988
Authoritarianism · Clientelism · Democracy · Democratization · Dominance (genetics · Legislature · Opposition (politics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Technocracy · International Development and Aid · Law · Political Conflict and Governance · Politics and Society in Latin America
The Uneven Performance of Third Wave Democracies
Sex and the State
Do the Poor Count?
Whose merit, which redistribution? Elites, taxes, and transfers in Brazil and South Africa
Understanding support for Mano Dura strategies
The Politics of Subnational Decentralization in France, Brazil, and Italy
Life after Dictatorship
The Armed Branch of the State
Authoritarian Origins of Democratic Party Systems in Africa
Neopatrimonial Regimes and Political Transitions in Africa
“Corrective Intervention” versus “Unfinished Revolution”
“Growth With Equity” in Chile's New Democracy
Paradoxes of Gendered Political Opportunity in the Venezuelan Transition to Democracy
The Military and Democratization in El Salvador
Decentralization in Africa
The EU and Democratic Leverage
Parallel lives? The Greek and Turkish dictatorships’ self-transformation stories
Elections and political development in Central Asia
Democracy, Authoritarianism and State Strength
Rethinking the Iberian Transformations
The Brazilian military after the Cold War
State Power and the Economic Origins of Democracy
Elites and institutions in conservative transitions to democracy
Liberalism, democracy and the Turkish centre‐right
Must Eastern Europe follow the Latin American way
Ejército y la democratización en El Salvador
Legislative Coalition Size and Antigovernment Protests in Latin America
Strategic Violence during Democratization
The Difficult Transition from Clientelism to Citizenship
The Art of the Possible
Not-So-Public Contention
Lessons from Latin America
A Comparativist's Perspective
Venezuela
Sharing Saddles
Buying Support and Buying Time
Continuity amid Change
Creating Democracy's Good Losers
Introducing authoritarian diasporas
The politics of human rights in democratic Brazil
Military loyalty and the failure of democratization in Africa
Give them toys? Military allocations and regime stability in transitional democracies
Transitions to Democracy and Internal Party Rules
Labor and Pacted Democracy
Obstacles to Social Reform in Brazil's New Democracy
Dual Transitions from Authoritarian Rule
Democratization in Africa after 1989
De-Thawing Democracy
Capitalists without a Class
Corporatism, Totalitarianism, and Transitions to Democracy
Democracy Promotion, Civil Society Building, and the Primacy of Politics
How Do Violent Politicians Govern? The Case of Paramilitary-Tied Mayors in Colombia
Authoritarian Institutions and Regime Survival
Political culture and democracy
Transition, the state and relations of political power in South Africa
Changing relations of political power in South Africa's transition
Too little knowledge is a dangerous thing
Surviving the return to ‘normalcy
Ciclos de mobilização política e mudança institucional no Brasil
Popular Representation and Political Dissatisfaction in Chile's New Democracy
Where Did All the Protesters Go
Institutional Reform and Violence Reduction in Pernambuco, Brazil
Twelve years a slave? Ennahdha's constrained (ir)responsibility in post-revolutionary Tunisia (2011-2023)
From Politics Back to the Barracks in Nigeria
The politics of indigenous land rights Brazil
The politics of indigenous land rights in Brazil
Democratic Practice after the Revolution
Between Coups and Election
Critical elections and the mainsprings of American politics.
Authoritarian Brazil
Democracies
Rethinking Military Politics
The New authoritarianism in Latin America
State and Society in Brazil
Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy
Brazil
State and society in Brazil
Democracy from Above
Paradigm Lost
Will More Countries Become Democratic
| Unique citing works | 68 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,89 |
| Citation span | 1990 - 2026 (37) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 67 |