The Legitimacy of Political Institutions: Explaining Contemporary Populism in Latin America

Populism is an enduring feature of Latin American electoral democracies. Within the past decade, scholars have witnessed the political ascendancy of populist politicians from both the left and right of the ideological spectrum. This naturally raises the question as to why populism has proven resilient in some Latin American democracies, whereas in others political forces have remained relatively moderate and institutionalized. This article argues that this phenomenon can be explained by varying levels of public trust in the traditional political institutions of liberal democracy across the region. Specifically, where public trust in political institutions is low, voters will be attracted to candidates who portray themselves as radical "outsiders," crusading against the established political order. This hypothesis is tested on a new data set of 48 presidential elections, across 18 Latin American countries, between the years 1996 and 2008. The statistical results provide strong support for this argument.