Abstract
Focussing on the Latin American region, this chapter builds on previous findings with two aims: first, to both identify different intraregional paths and, second, to analyse under what conditions recall has an effect (positive or negative) on democracy. In doing so, three aspects arise. First, there are origins and terms of the legal provisions for recall. Second, there are the actual arrangements that emerge. Third, the discursive level requires separate consideration since recall is not only an institution and a practice but also “a challenge” and a citizen’s demand. This third section gives particular attention to Mexico, where the regulation of a particular form of recall has recently been announced by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and just now enacted in parliament (October 2019). This threefold approach provides the basis for a concluding discussion about the relationship between recall and broader processes of democratization.
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Notes
- 1.
This section is based on the arguments developed in Welp and Castellanos (2019).
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Welp, Y., Whitehead, L. (2020). The Recall Revival and Its Mixed Implications for Democracy: Evidence from Latin America. In: Welp, Y., Whitehead, L. (eds) The Politics of Recall Elections. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37610-9_9
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