Party Systems in Latin America Essay - 2791 Words

Party Systems in Latin America This essay will compare and contrast the party systems of Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay according to Mainwaring and Shugarts Chapter 11 of Presidentialism and Democracy in Latin America. First, I will discuss majority verses minority government; second, I will discuss the number of relevant parties; third, I will discuss the level of party discipline with the parties. In Presidential systems of government, the level of support for the president in congress, either through a majority or coalitions, influences the success of the regime to get things done. The amount of parties in a system indicates the likelihood the president will have a majority or be forced to focus on forming†¦show more content†¦The President has strong proactive powers to counter this weakness. In Uruguay, the President has historically been supported by a substantial amount of congress rendering coalitions unnecessary. According to tale 11.1in Mainwaring and Shugart, the president in Uruguay has had an average of 45.6% of the seats in the Lower House and 43.8% of the seats in the upper house. This congressional composition is an ideal amount of support because it allows checks and balances to work; yet, the president can successfully implement a program. The last election in Uruguay did not yield this traditional composition. No party received a significant majority. The votes were split three ways between the Blanco, the Colorado, and the EP (Progressive Encounter). Whether or not this significant plurality trend will continue is unclear. The president of Argentina has usually enjoyed a significant amount of support in congress from his/her own party and coalitions. Mainwaring and Shugarts table11.1 shows Argentina President to have an average support of 48.3% in t he Lower House and 52% in the upper house. Including coalition partners 49% in the Lower House and 52.0% in the upper house supports the president. This kind of congressional composition has the ability to inhibit checks and balance by a minority party. This is the extreme of winner take all politics, majority politics. In the last presidentialShow MoreRelatedAnnotated Bibliography : Types Of Leftist Governments1442 Words   |  6 PagesSteven Venegas July 23, 2016 Annotated Bibliography Question: What preexisting or absent institutions have led Latin American nations to see a divergence in the types of leftist governments in power? Group 1: Party Systems and Political Institutions French, John. 2010. â€Å"Many Lefts, One Path? Chavez and Lula.† In Latin America’s Left Turns: Politics, Policies, and Trajectories of Change. Eds. Maxwell A. Cameron Eric Hershberg. Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. 41-60. 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