Populism and the Erosion of Horizontal Accountability in Latin America

Author Information

Saskia Pauline Ruth

Date of Publication

2017 12:00 AM

Security Theme

Political Stability

Keywords

Political Stability, srhreports, politicalstability, Latin America, political stability, horizontal accountability, liberal democracy, populism, unified government, absence of unified government, instituational change, power vacuum

Description

“This article explores which factors enable or hinder populist presidents in Latin America to pursue a radical strategy of institutional change and induce the erosion of horizontal checks and balances. Applying an actor-centred approach, the article focuses on specific constellations in the political arena that shape populist presidents’ incentives and their ability to engage in institutional change. Three conditions are considered to be most decisive: the absence of unified government between the executive and the legislature, the existence of a ‘power vacuum’ in the political arena and the distribution of public support. Using configurational analyses, different causal paths explaining the presence or absence of the erosion of horizontal accountability are identified."

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Jan 1st, 12:00 AM

Populism and the Erosion of Horizontal Accountability in Latin America

“This article explores which factors enable or hinder populist presidents in Latin America to pursue a radical strategy of institutional change and induce the erosion of horizontal checks and balances. Applying an actor-centred approach, the article focuses on specific constellations in the political arena that shape populist presidents’ incentives and their ability to engage in institutional change. Three conditions are considered to be most decisive: the absence of unified government between the executive and the legislature, the existence of a ‘power vacuum’ in the political arena and the distribution of public support. Using configurational analyses, different causal paths explaining the presence or absence of the erosion of horizontal accountability are identified."