July 2024, Volume 35, Issue 3
The Salvadoran president’s “iron fist” policies have become one of the most popular political brands in Latin America. But the very reasons that explain his success in El Salvador point to why his repressive approach will not succeed elsewhere.
April 2022, Volume 33, Issue 2
The country’s opposition beat an authoritarian incumbent by unifying, organizing its supporters, and contesting every election no matter the odds. Can the strategy be applied elsewhere?
July 2021, Volume 32, Issue 3
Recent high-profile scandals have laid bare persistent shortcomings of Latin American democracy that, if unaddressed, could prove fatal.
April 2016, Volume 27, Issue 2
Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador are weighed down by high crime, sluggish economies, and heavy reliance on remittances. And when significant political change has taken place, it has resulted in frightening political fragmentation.
April 2010, Volume 21, Issue 2
A Central American military once again returned to the political center stage in 2009, but this had less to do with power-hungry generals than with warring civilian elites whose respect for liberal-democratic principles proved to be questionable at best.
April 2026, Volume 37, Issue 2
An opposition party that swept into power with a 2021 electoral win was swept out by voters four years later. It failed to deliver on its promises and was beset by the same authoritarian leanings of those it had replaced.
Nowadays some politicians cry “fraud” even before the election. Too often the accusation has nothing to do with electoral manipulation. It has become a weapon to attack institutions, justify antidemocratic measures, and reject election results.
Days after the election and no one knows who the next president will be. Even worse, none of the likely winners offer much hope for the country’s democracy.
Of course not. But the region’s democratic hopes are fighting an uphill battle against corruption, crime, and a violent past.
