Date of Award

1-1-2009

Language

English

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School/Department

Department of Political Science

Content Description

1 online resource (x, 612 pages)

Dissertation/Thesis Chair

Erik P Hoffmann

Committee Members

Victor H Asal, Sally Friedman, José E Cruz

Keywords

Argentina, Chile, Party system stability, Party systems, Peru, Venezuela, Political parties, Democracy

Subject Categories

Political Science

Abstract

It has been argued that party systems should always be on "working order" because stable party systems correlate with stable democracies, and whenever party systems become dysfunctional, democracy becomes dysfunctional as well. In Latin America, there is legitimate concern for party system stability precisely because of such outcome. Political parties in the region not only face internal and external challenges, but also the added pressure of being part of democratic consolidation. Most importantly, Latin American politics currently present a great challenge: how to restore citizen trust in political parties and party systems.

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