Democratic Governability in Latin America: Limits and Possibilities in the Context of Neoliberal Domination

Abstract

It is no longer possible, not even in the strictly theoretical sense, to speak of governability in the abstract. The spectrum of problems presented by the current Latin American reality constitutes the antipodal context in which Huntington's conception of governability was formulated. In analysing the recent political and economic experience in the region, a set of emergent tendencies can be observed which form part of a changing matrix of problems and challenges shared in common. The consolidation of neoliberalism became associated with the formation of restrained democracies. Nevertheless, political events since the 1990s have yielded counter-systemic tendencies and corresponding advances in the sphere of progressive politics. These changes suggest the incubation of new development strategies and an unfolding tendency towards the creation of new forms of democracy.