New wave of populism in Latin America

Latin America’s Coming Populist Wave?

An election wave in Latin America over the next 12 months will see almost two-in-three voters in the region choosing a new leader. Yet despite the broad economic gains, there are signs that voters are frustrated and angry with their political leaders, write Brian Winter and Robert Muggah in Foreign Policy. As a result, “there is a real risk of hard populist turns to the right and the left that could radically change policies toward security, trade, the economy, and Latin America’s relationships with the world -- including the United States.”

“Most of the region’s economies are again growing after six years of crisis. This uptick is admittedly modest -- about 1.2 percent expected regional GDP growth in 2017, compared to a projected global average of 3.6 percent. But the sound fiscal policies embraced by several governments have analysts predicting regional growth of around 2 percent in 2018,” they write.

Yet, “according to the latest polls, faith in democratic politics around Latin America is at historic lows. The proportion of Latin Americans supporting democracy slid from 66 percent in 2014 to roughly 58 percent today, with more than 40 percent saying they are prepared to support a military coup to tackle crime and corruption. Young people are especially disillusioned -- roughly 20 million of Latin American 15-29 year-olds are unemployed. Many are taking to the streets -- and their digital equivalents -- to vent their frustrations. The prospect of low-paying jobs is forcing a good number into the informal economy, including crime. Latin America already has 43 of the 50 most murderous cities in the world.”

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