Publications [#152458] of Karen Remmer

Journal Articles

1. K. Remmer, “The Politics of Institutional Change: Electoral Reform in Latin America, 1978-2002, Party Politics, vol. 14 no. 1 (January, 2008), pp. 5-30
   (last updated on 2008/12/10)

   Abstract:
   Building on the growing body of research on political institutions, this paper explores the causes of electoral reform with specific reference to the Latin American experience. What factors account for the extensive array of electoral reforms adopted in the region over the past two decades? How are shifting patterns of political representation related to institutional change? To what extent have revisions in the rules of the electoral game reflected rather than generated changes in the structure or stability of Latin party systems? To address these questions, I develop an account of electoral reform that places shifting partisan political fortunes at the center of analysis and show that changes in the rules of the electoral game tend to reflect the political self-interest of dominant political parties as defined in relationship to mounting electoral uncertainty. The evidence regarding the impact of electoral reforms on party system change, on the other hand, fails to comport with the expectations derived from the comparative institutional literature. Over the past two decades, party system change in Latin America has generated institutional change more predictably than vice versa.