POLITICAL PARTIES & THE LATIN AMERICAN POLITY

INTEREST AGGREGATION or the Combining of Demands An activity process Backed by resources Can be performed by Individual or group Political party the dominant form

INSTITUTIONAL GROUPS INTEREST AGGREGATION Institutional groups with a history as aggregators of political interests Religious denominations (especially Roman Catholic Church in Latin America) Military organizations Bureaucracy (Ministry of Public Works)

Military: Second most important Aggregators of Political Interests in Latin America Monopoly of coercive resources Goals vary Nationalistic development within global capitalism (Brazilian model ) Social justice and revolutionary change (Peruvian model ) Process of aggregating interests changes the military as an institution

ASSOCIATIONAL GROUPS AS INTEREST AGGREGATORS Composed of associations of institutions Examples include : Peasant confederations Labor confederations Middle class groups (civic associations) Urban Poor (Bolivarian Circles in contemporary Venezuela)

In Latin America Political parties are the most important institutions involved in interest aggregation Nineteenth century political parties founded by elite groups in competition with other factions of the traditional “big three” Conservatives Liberals

Contemporary Latin America Most contemporary political parties and party systems emerged following periods of military rule Traditional Conservatives and Liberals destroyed Exception: Colombia - 19 th century Conservative and Liberal political parties continue to dominate the system of political parties

Rise of Contemporary Political Parties in Latin America Middle sectors in the Southern Cone gained visibility during first decade of Twentieth Century Gave rise to reformist political parties Radicals in Argentina & Chile Colorados & Blancos in Uruguay Some with international ties Communist parties Socialist parties

Mexican Revolution 1917

Revolution Led to establishment of Revolutionary Institutional Party (PRI) in 1928 Mass based party with a revolutionary agenda tempered with passage of time Aspired to include all classes (polyclasista) Control consolidated by Lázaro Cardenas Ruled Mexico for more than 70 years (until 2000)

Emergence of Contemporary Political Parties in Latin America: Center-Left Tradition I Haya de la Torre – APRA Growth of the middle sectors throughout Western Hemisphere in 1920’s and 1930’s led to the founding of a new group of mass based political parties APRA in Peru (Indo-America) Most Focused on national concerns PLN in Costa Rica AD in Venezuela

Emergence of Contemporary Political Parties in Latin America II. Christian Democratic parties appeared in 1930’s and 1940’s Varying degrees of clerical orientation Led by pro-clerical middle class Greatest successes in Venezuela, Chile & Costa Rica

Emergence of Contemporary Political Parties in Latin America III. Nationalist parties based on strong personalities who established linkages to disadvantaged sectors Peronism in 1940’s (Argentina) Velasco Ibarra in 1940’s (Ecuador) Chavismo in 1990’s (Venezuela) Evita Peron addresses crowd of 2,000000

Political Party Systems differ from Political Parties Political party systems include: Constellation of individual political parties Relationships among the political parties Types of party systems (first cut) Non-competitive Competitive

Party Systems Structured by Elections and Voting Procedures Universal suffrage widespread by the end of the twentieth century Voting often compulsory Plural vs. proportional representation Electoral turnout Simultaneity of national and regional elections

National and Regional Institutions of Government also Structure Party Systems Strong national political institutions favor national party system Single Member Districts vs. proportional representation Decentralization opens way for regional political parties

PARTY SYSTEMS CAN BE NON- COMPETITIVE Mexican party system until 2000 Argentine party system between 1946 – 1955 Emerging Venezuelan party system of the Fifth Republic

Competitive Party Systems: more than one political party has possibility of winning Majoritarian Multiparty Attitudes toward regime Consensual, Conflictual Consociational

Political Parties in Government Pass and implement legislation Use of negotiations, bargaining, and competition Form coalitions in order to govern Some accountability expected in democracies

Characteristics of Interest Aggregation by Political Parties In Latin America Restrains and limits the impact of political culture Alters (or exacerbates?) the amount of polarization In comparison with dictatorial control aggregation by political parties tends to be supportive of Freedom Participation Stability

Trends in Political Party and Party System Evolution More democracy? Representative Direct Movement away from single party systems? Decline of ideology? Special case of Cuba, Venezuela, Bolivia