Do the Poor Count?

Democratic Institutions and Accountability in a Context of Poverty

Häftad, Engelska, 2011

AvMichelle M. Taylor-Robinson

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Latin America’s flirtation with neoliberal economic restructuring in the 1980s and 1990s (the so-called Washington Consensus strategy) had the effect of increasing income inequality throughout the region. The aim of this economic policy was in part to create the conditions for stable democracy by ensuring efficient economic use of resources, both human and capital, but the widening gap between rich and poor threatened to undermine political stability. At the heart of the dilemma faced by these new democracies is the question of accountability: Are all citizens equally capable of holding the government accountable if it does not represent their interests? In this book, Michelle Taylor-Robinson investigates both the formal institutions of democracy (such as electoral rules and the design of the legislative and executive branches) and informal institutions (such as the nomination procedures of political parties and patron-client relationships) to see what incentives legislators have to pay attention to the needs of poor people and thereby adequately represent their interests.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2011-10-15
Mått152 x 229 x 18 mm
Vikt386 g
FormatHäftad
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor248
FörlagPennsylvania State University Press
ISBN9780271037516

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ContentsList of TablesList of AbbreviationsAcknowledgments1.Institutions, Poverty, and Democratic Consolidation2. Theorizing Representation and Accountability in a Context of Poverty3.Institutions and Poor People’s Confidence in Their Legislature4.Evolution of Institutions: An Overview of Honduras’s Political History5.Institutions and Incentives in Honduras’s Third-Wave Democracy6.Institutions, Incentives, and Roles: Legislators’ Identities About Their Job7.Roles, Attitudes, and Actions: Does Anyone Represent Poor People?8.Do the Poor Count in Latin American Democracies?Appendix: Coding Informal RolesReferencesIndex

“Despite the presence of large—even majority—poor populations in Latin America, democratic institutions and policies frequently do not reflect their interests. Taylor-Robinson’s book presents a thoughtful analysis of the causes of that ‘representation gap.’ She offers a rich institutional account, suggesting that a combination of institutions (electoral, nominations, and clientelistic) leads elected officials to respond differently to their privileged and poor constituencies. Both cross-national survey data and a detailed study of the Honduran case support her claim that the best representation the poor can hope for is usually clientelistic representation, and even that is not guaranteed. Yet Taylor-Robinson provides a final twist, insisting that clientelistic representation itself offers more benefits than are usually seen, for the poor themselves and for the stability of their political systems. Overall, this is an impressive book, which fruitfully applies the theoretical tools of rational-choice institutionalism to one of the most important problems of contemporary Latin American politics.”—Kathryn Hochstetler, Balsillie School of International Affairs and University of Waterloo