Capital Mobility, Veto Players, and Redistribution in Latin America During the Left Turn

Fabiano Santos,Thiago Moreira Da Silva,Acir Almeida

doi:10.1590/1981-3821201900010005

Fabiano Santos, Thiago Moreira Da Silva + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/1981-3821201900010005

Copy DOI

Abstract

This article offers an explanation for the intensity of redistributive policies from Latin American leftist governments during the so-called ‘left turn’. It challenges the idea that the recent radical leftist governments are the product of region-specific characteristics. Based on theoretical models that analyze the implications of inequality in democracies and the moderating effects of different economic and institutional structures, it argues instead that the left’s redistributive policies were more intense in countries where capital mobility is low and there was [...]

Highlights

EBERHARDT, Marcus (2011), XTCD: Stata module to investigate variable/residual crosssection dependence
Our indings shed light on the recent con licts and transformations that Latin American democracies have experienced. Regarding the former, we offer an interpretation that emphasizes their redistributive nature, locating the con licts among the different elements that comprise the political dynamics of very unequal democracies, instead of blaming particularities of the region
The indings allow us to reinterpret some of the political phenomena characteristic of the Latin American left turn, such as, for example, institutional transformations aimed at broadening and deepening direct popular participation in politics (AVRITZER, 2009; POGREBINSCHI, 2013)

Summary

Brief literature review

Latin America’s left turn has inspired many studies addressing different aspects of the phenomenon. On the other hand, notwithstanding the strong (positive) association between the size of the commodities sector and the intensity of leftist policies, we ind the economic explanation unsatisfactory since it cannot account for the political con licts that accompanied the implementation of intense redistributive policies For these reasons, in the two sections we offer a modest contribution to the debate. We identify the causal connections proposed in the literature between the intensity of redistributive policies and the institutional and economic structures, and, based on these, build our explanation for the policy differences between Latin American leftist governments during the recent commodities boom.

Inequality and redistribution

Empirical analysis

APC PNP FA FA FA MVR

Data and methods

Results

Summary and concluding remarks