Christian Democracy in Latin America: Electoral Competition and Regime Conflicts - Paperback

by Scott Mainwaring (Editor), Timothy R. Scully (Editor)

Christian Democracy swept across parts of Latin America, gaining influence in Venezuela in the 1940s, Chile in the 1950s, El Salvador and Guatemala in the 1960s, and Costa Rica and Mexico in the 1980s. This book offers an overview of Christian Democracy in the region- underscoring its remarkable diversity-and examines the Christian Democratic organizations of Chile and Mexico, which are still major parties today. The concluding section analyzes the demise of formerly significant Christian Democratic parties in El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, and Venezuela. Christian Democracy in Latin America provides the definitive stufy of the nature, rise, and decline of Christian Democracy in Latin America. The book enriches the broader theoretical literature on political parties by highlighting the distinctive strategic dilemmas parties face, and the distinctive objectives they pursue, in contexts of fragile democracy or of authoritarian regimes.

Front Jacket

Christian Democracy swept across parts of Latin America, gaining influence in Venezuela in the 1940s, Chile in the 1950s, El Salvador and Guatemala in the 1960s, and Costa Rica and Mexico in the 1980s. This book offers an overview of Christian Democracy in the region-- underscoring its remarkable diversity--and examines the Christian Democratic organizations of Chile and Mexico, which are still major parties today. The concluding section analyzes the demise of formerly significant Christian Democratic parties in El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, and Venezuela.
Christian Democracy in Latin America provides the definitive stufy of the nature, rise, and decline of Christian Democracy in Latin America. The book enriches the broader theoretical literature on political parties by highlighting the distinctive strategic dilemmas parties face, and the distinctive objectives they pursue, in contexts of fragile democracy or of authoritarian regimes.

Back Jacket

Scott Mainwaring and Timothy Scully have again collaborated very successfully to compile an important collection of original essays on contemporary Latin American politics. The quality is excellent, and the book makes a valuable contribution to our understanding of Christian Democracy and party politics in the region. --Kevin J. Middlebrook, Institute of Latin American Studies, University of London
"This book makes a most welcome addition to the growing scholarship on party systems and democratic representation in contemporary Latin America. It provides a comprehensive overview of the development of Christian Democratic parties, chronicles their achievements, and explores the ideological and political challenges that they confront in an era of rapid change. The contributors have produced the definitive study of Christian Democracy in Latin America and a first-rate analysis of political change in the region." --Ken Roberts, University of New Mexico

Author Biography

Scott Mainwaring is the Eugene and Helen Conley Chair and is Professor of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame. Timothy R. Scully is Executive Vice-President and Professor of Government and International Studies at the University of Notre Dame.