Premium
Rethinking the Politics of the Shift Left in Latin America: Towards a Relational Approach
Author(s) -
HUNT SARAH
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
bulletin of latin american research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.24
H-Index - 33
eISSN - 1470-9856
pISSN - 0261-3050
DOI - 10.1111/blar.12416
Subject(s) - politics , geopolitics , latin americans , power (physics) , political science , state (computer science) , democracy , political economy , sociology , law , physics , algorithm , quantum mechanics , computer science
The shift left in Latin American politics has revealed critical weaknesses within the dominant structural, state‐ and society‐based explanations concerning the politics of development in the region. This article argues that while elements of each remain relevant, there is a strong case for adopting a ‘relational’ frame of analysis that can capture the specific ways in which the Left came to power, and the unfolding implications for democracy and development. This relational approach focuses on how the new social and political economy basis of the new ruling coalitions and alternative geopolitical alliances shape politics and the prospects for development in the region.