Politics and Policy in Contemporary Argentina (Lat.Am. Stud)

Introduction

Argentina is a fascinating and intriguing case to study politics and policies. Its history is representative of general trends in the Latin American Southern Cone, although, it is also distinctive in paradoxical ways. Its passage from a rich young republic ranked among the top ten economies of the world at the beginning of the 20th century to a declining and crisis-ridden economy ruled by authoritarian and flawed democratic regimes has raised questions about the incapacity to overcome chronic political and economic problems. Within the developing world, Argentina stands out as a case of reversal of development compounded by political instability and violence. As in other Latin American countries, the impact of global trends has highlighted new dimensions of these problems since the 1980s. The annotated bibliography compiled in this essay offers a sample of those old and new academic concerns. It starts with general works that provide background information about politics and policy in Argentina, followed by two sections focusing on the most recent political and economic processes, namely, the transition from authoritarianism to democracy in the early 1980s and from a state-centered economic model to a market-centered one in the early 1990s. From the outset of these dramatic transformations, a number of topics gathered scholars’ attention. Thus, the unfolding of these two transitions encouraged extensive research on their timing, modality, impact, and related processes and actors, such as the new role adopted by the military and political parties; the socioeconomic changes involved in those transformations; the challenges of strengthening democratic institutions; the evolution of the political party system in general and of Peronism in particular; the dynamics of electoral processes; the causes and consequences of the 2001 crisis; the emergence of new forms of social protest and political mobilization; and the implications of new policies being implemented. These issues help to structure the rest of the essay around various sections. Each of them contains a selected number of works in Spanish and English. Rather than a complete, comprehensive list of annotations, each section compiles a selection of studies addressing different dimensions of the topic and presenting complementary and/or contrasting points of view. Two comparative sections are included at the end to provide an overview of works that contextualize the unique features of Argentine politics and policies in the regional and international context. The comparisons also help to identify lessons from the Argentine case that may illuminate other cases in the region and beyond.

General Overviews

There is a considerable number of works that provide broad overviews of Argentina’s history and the evolution of some policy issues. Palacio 1984 is one of the most comprehensive historical overviews available in Spanish, covering major developments since the first settlements in the Río de la Plata area up to 1976. Brown 2002 takes a similar starting point but focuses on the role of agricultural activities in situating the country in international markets competitively by the second half of the 19th century. Rock 1985 goes from the colonial times to the early 1980s, tracing sociopolitical and economic facts to account for Argentina’s erratic path. Romero 2002 offers a comprehensive historical account of Argentina’s history in the 20th century, including a thorough analysis of the role of the state as provider of public goods and guardian of the political order. Randall 1978 provides the background on Argentine economics during the 20th century, giving special consideration to the role of recurrent crises and reversal of economic policies in the explanation of economic development. Haverland 2009 concentrates on political, social, and economic issues, with special emphasis on the socioeconomic impact of globalization in Argentina’s society. A different perspective is offered in Calvert and Calvert 1989: it examines cultural variables to explain Argentina’s political instability and erratic economic performance. Lewis 1990 analyzes the role of the capitalist class, along with its evolution and relation with other key social actors throughout most of the 20th century.

Brown, Jonathan. Historia socioeconómica de la Argentina, 1776–1860. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Siglo XXI de Argentina Editores, 2002.
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This research begins with a discussion of the colonial economy in the Río de la Plata area. It then focuses on the industrial markets for Argentine raw materials, the role of Buenos Aires in regional and international trade, the expansion of production in the Pampa, and the socioeconomic situation of the interior.
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Calvert, Susan, and Peter Calvert. Argentina: Political Culture and Instability. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1989.
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The author presents an account of Argentina, a country blessed with immense natural resources but that has so far failed to justify expectations. The cultural and political heritage is examined to help explain the political instability and economic underdevelopment of the country. Culture, Catholicism, liberalism, and personalism are among the influences discussed.
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Haverland, Jeanne B., ed. Argentina: Economic, Political and Social Issues. New York: Nova Science, 2009.
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This book concentrates on the economic, political, and social issues facing Argentina. Specifically, it discusses the social consequences of globalization in Buenos Aires, the socioeconomic effect of the most recent economic crisis, rural development, education, and human rights.
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Lewis, Paul H. The Crisis of Argentine Capitalism. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1990.
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This study describes the Argentine capitalists, their development, and their relationships with other groups that impinge upon them. The period covered is roughly from the turn of the 20th century through the first half of President Raúl Alfonsín’s administration.
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Palacio, Ernesto. Historia de la Argentina, 1515–1976. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Abeledo-Perrot, 1984.
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This book is a detailed historical narrative of Argentina beginning with the arrival of the first Europeans, through the Spanish colonial period, independence, national consolidation, and the 20th century until 1976.
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Randall, Laura. An Economic History of Argentina in the Twentieth Century. New York: Columbia University Press, 1978.
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This book gives a general background of the Argentine economy during the 20th century. The author argues that since World War I, Argentina has not been part of any other nation’s economic empire and therefore economically independent in all essentials. She also argues that specific government policies are key variables in explaining past economic development.
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Rock, David. Argentina, 1516–1982: From Spanish Colonization to the Falklands War. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1985.
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In this comprehensive history, David Rock analyzes the early colonial history of Argentina, pointing to the colonial forms established during Spanish colonization as the source for Argentina’s continued dependence on foreign commercial and investment partnerships. The collapse of Argentina’s western European ties after World War II is subsequently seen as the underlying cause for her current economic and political crisis.
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Romero, Luis Alberto. A History of Argentina in the Twentieth Century. Translated by James P. Brennan. University Park: Pennsylvania State University, 2002.
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This book provides an overview of Argentina’s recent history and of the country’s problems. It addresses Argentina’s place in the world in the early 21st century; the characteristics, functions, and instruments that the state must have to ensure social welfare, regulate the economy, and establish justice; and the characteristics of a political system that is capable of ensuring democracy.
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Background Studies

Political and socioeconomic changes in Argentina have been addressed in reference to specific development strategies and/or periods. These are pieces that work at a certain level of generality, giving the reader the necessary background to understand more specific processes and problems. Some of the studies take a revisionist approach. Brennan 2007 is a case in point. A careful revision of previous assumptions about the political economy of postwar populist regimes is to be found in this article. Wynia 1978 concentrates on the same period, though its analytical focus is on the policymaking process and the interaction among various actors and institutions in the process of adoption and implementation of policies. Paus 1989 focuses on the potential and limitations of import substitution industrialization, while O’Donnell 1978 provides a political account of the parallel evolution of economic development and class interests during two crucial decades (mid-1950s to mid-1970s). Smith 1989 is also concerned with problems of accumulation, legitimation, and, eventually, dismissal of authoritarian regimes in the second half of the 20th century. Lewis 2002 concentrates on the human rights violations that characterized the so-called Dirty War, describing the historical roots of political and ideological tensions and how these issues shaped the transition to democracy. Waisman 1987 overlaps with O’Donnell 1978 and Smith 1989 in its concern with class structure, capitalist accumulation, and the state’s role in promoting economic and political development (or, in its terms, the reversal of development in postwar Argentina). Heymann and Kosacoff 2000 analyzes the performance of the Argentine economy in the 1990s; in particular, their work examines the impact of the structural reforms implemented in that decade in terms of several socioeconomic indicators.

Brennan, James P. “Prolegomenon to Neoliberalism: The Political Economy of Populist Argentina, 1943–1976.” Latin American Perspectives 34.3 (2007): 49–66.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X07300588Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This research study focuses on the economic history of postwar Argentina. It shows that the highly partisan writings on postwar economic history and neoliberal prescriptions for economic reform have relied on an incomplete—and as a result distorted—understanding of the policies implemented in the decades before the neoliberal reforms.
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Heymann, Daniel, and Bernardo Kosacoff, ed. La Argentina de los noventa: Desempeño económico en un contexto de reformas. Vol. 1. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Editorial Universitaria de Buenos Aires, 2000.
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This edited volume discusses the economic situation of Argentina during the 1990s. It focuses on the economic reforms and their impact on macroeconomic performance. The authors analyze the effect of economic policy on investment, infrastructure, industry, capital, the labor force, income, and standards of living. Title translation: Argentina in the 1990s: Economic performance in a context of reforms.
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Lewis, Paul H. Guerrillas and Generals: The “Dirty War” in Argentina. Westport, CT: Praeger, 2002.
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Lewis analyzes the causes of Argentina’s Dirty War, describes the ideologies that motivated both sides, and explores its consequences. He begins by tracing the Dirty War’s origins back to military interventions in the 1930s and 1940s and the rise of General Juan Perón’s populist regime. Lewis also describes the intrigues that undermined the military regime, its retreat from power, and the human rights trials after democratization.
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O’Donnell, Guillermo. “State and Alliances in Argentina, 1956–1976.” Journal of Development Studies 15.1 (1978): 3–31.
DOI: 10.1080/00220387808421699Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This paper analyzes the relationship between the pattern of economic development and the nature of class interests in Argentina. The analysis shows that changes in the balance of power follow closely the cycles of economic activity, foreign trade, and inflation and deflation.
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Paus, Eva. “The Political Economy of Manufactured Export Growth: Argentina and Brazil in the 1970s.” Journal of Developing Areas 23.2 (1989): 173–200.
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Eva Paus analyzes the challenges of manufactured export growth in Argentina and Brazil during the 1970s. She cites the structural nature of the balance-of-payment constraints, with limited traditional export commodities unable to finance the growing demand for import required for the import substitution industrialization process as a barrier to continued growth.
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Smith, William C. Authoritarianism and the Crisis of the Argentine Political Economy. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1989.
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The purpose of this book is to reconstruct and make sense of the crisis of the Argentine political economy. The format combines a chronologically ordered narrative interwoven with theoretical analysis of the legitimation and accumulation problems facing authoritarian forms of domination, and the extrication scenarios encountered when authoritarian experiments fail.
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Waisman, Carlos H. Reversal of Development in Argentina: Postwar Counterrevolutionary Policies and Their Structural Consequences. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1987.
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This book provides a historical overview of the formation of the Argentine state and its role in the class structure and capital accumulation. The author argues that Argentina’s failure to establish a stable and legitimate political order can be traced to the manner in which the political economy has been structured historically around two poles, one agrarian and another urban and industrial.
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Wynia, Gary. Argentina in the Postwar Era: Politics and Economic Policy Making in a Divided Society. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1978.
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This book is a study of Argentina’s economic development policy, governmental processes, and the behavior of public officials. The author argues that these issues need to be studied by examining economic policymaking as a process involving the creation of political organizations and programs that induce citizens to cooperate with officials to achieve their policy objectives.
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The Postwar Period

This set of volumes provides detailed accounts of political and economic issues during the postwar period. Dorfman 1983 ably discusses the changes brought by industrialization, while Potash 1985a, Potash 1985b, Rouquié 1981, and Rouquié 1985 explore the role of the military in politics after the 1930s, their relationship with other political actors, and the long-term consequences of their involvement in government and society. Di Tella and Dornbusch 1989 discusses the interplay of politics and economics from the mid-1940s to the early 1980s; the material is organized chronologically, revolving around the main administrations during that period. O’Donnell’s works represent a major contribution to our understanding of Southern Cone political systems in general and Argentina in particular: O’Donnell 1973 questions the assumptions of modernization theory and elaborates on the decline of populist regimes and the emergence of bureaucratic authoritarianism; his edited volume O’Donnell 1986 uses a comparative perspective to analyze the transition from authoritarianism to democracy in the region.

Di Tella, Guido, and Rudiger Dornbusch, ed. The Political Economy of Argentina, 1946–1983. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1989.
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This edited volume takes a chronological approach to the Argentine political economy from the first Perón government through the end of the last military regime. It discusses issues of political and economic crises, nationalism, Peronist economic policies, the Revolución Libertadora, and the various economic policies adopted during the 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s.
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Dorfman, Adolfo. Cincuenta años de industrialización en la Argentina, 1930–1980: Desarrollo y perspectivas. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Ediciones Solar, 1983.
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In this work, the author explores the main tendencies and factors that have contributed to Argentine industrialization. This is accomplished within the context of economic, social, and political development in Argentina. Furthermore, Dorfman discusses the political expectations of a society in constant transformation. Title translation: Fifty years of industrialization in Argentina: 1930–1980.
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O’Donnell, Guillermo A. Modernization and Bureaucratic-Authoritarianism: Studies in South American Politics. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1973.
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O’Donnell’s book corrects some fundamental misconceptions about the relationship between socioeconomic modernization and political change in Latin America. He calls into question several liberal North American interpretations of political modernization and illuminates the collapse of populism in Argentina and Brazil.
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O’Donnell, Guillermo A., ed. Transitions from Authoritarian Rule. Vol. 4, Tentative Conclusions about Uncertain Democracies. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1986.
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This edited volume examines the process of democratization in southern Europe and Latin America. It provides new interpretations of both current and historical efforts of countries to end periods of authoritarian rule and to initiate transition to democracy, efforts that have met with widely varying degrees of success and failure.
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Potash, Robert A. El ejército y la política en la Argentina. Vol. 1, 1928–1945: De Yrigoyen a Perón. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Hyspamérica, 1985a.
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This volume focuses on the time period from Yrigoyen’s second presidency to the rise of Perón in 1945. An important part of the work centers on the revolutions of 6 September 1930 and 4 June 1943. The author uses detailed and plentiful documentation to reconstruct the political society and the military during this time period. Title translation: The military and politics in Argentina. Vol. 1, 1928–1945: From Yrigoyen to Perón.
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Potash, Robert A. El ejército y la política en la Argentina. Vol. 2, 1945–1962: De Perón a Frondizi. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Hyspamérica, 1985b.
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This volume focuses on the time period from Perón’s first two presidential terms to the military coup that deposed Arturo Frondizi. Potash describes an era in Argentine politics characterized by the rise of Peronism, changes of the economic structure, the mobilization of new social forces, and the country’s division into two opposing political camps. Title translation: The military and politics in Argentina. Vol. 2, 1945–1962: From Perón to Frondizi.
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Rouquié, Alain. Poder militar y sociedad politica en la Argentina. Vol. 1, Hasta 1943. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Emecé Editores, 1981.
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This is the first volume in a series of two that discusses the role of the military and the political society in Argentina. It covers major political developments up to 1943 and focuses on the development of a modern Argentine social and political system, the role of the armed forces, the relationship of radicals and conservatives with the military, and the military’s road to power. Title translation: Military power and political society in Argentina. Vol. 1, Up to 1943.
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Rouquié, Alain. Poder militar y sociedad politica en la Argentina. Vol. 2, 1943–1973. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Emecé Editores, 1985.
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This work covers the time period from 4 June 1943, when President Castillo was deposed, until the return of Perón on 12 October 1973. This book discusses the events that occurred during these three decades of Argentine history. Specifically, much time is given to the military and political society in this work. Title translation: Military power and political society in Argentina. Vol. 2, 1943–1973.
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Recent Political Processes

Studies on domestic politics in Argentina since the late 20th century have revolved around the performance of state institutions, the role of various political actors, and the process of democratization. Acuña 1995 addresses all those themes for the post-1983 period. Cavarozzi 1997 takes a longer time frame, covering from the end of Perón’s second term up to the mid-1990s and emphasizing the interplay of politics and economics. The question of authoritarianism and its implications for politics and policies underlies this work, while for Waisman 1999, Argentina’s democratic path is closely linked to the nature of its capitalist institutions. Instead, Canitrot 1996 questions previous assumptions and gives significant explanatory power to the role of the state, which in Argentina has acquired, in its view, considerable autonomy from social forces and has become a cause of crisis. Palermo and Novaro 1996 unveils the political processes behind the sweeping reforms implemented by the Menem administration in the early 1990s. Acuña 1994 works along similar lines; this is a political economy perspective and its goal is to assess the impact of the 1990s reforms on democratic consolidation. Levitsky and Murillo 2008 explains the Kirchners’ electoral successes in the 2000s by reference to their populist policies and the incapacity of other political forces to be an effective opposition. Lewis 2009 adds a critical and thorough perspective of the same period by focusing on the socioeconomic effects of the Kirchners’ redistributive policies.

Acuña, Carlos H. “Politics and Economies in the Argentina of the Nineties (Or, Why the Future No Longer Is What It Used to Be).” In Democracy, Markets, and Structural Reform in Latin America: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico. Edited by William C. Smith, Carlos H. Acuña, and Eduardo A. Gamarra, 31–74. Coral Gables, FL: Transaction, 1994.
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Acuña argues that because of their long-term consequences, the socioeconomic policies implemented by President Menem constitute a neoliberal revolution. Second, the completion of a number of reforms suggests that democracy in Argentina has been consolidated. Finally, he argues that present trends forecast the consolidation of an exclusionary but stable democracy.
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Acuña, Carlos H., ed. La nueva matriz política Argentina. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Ediciones Nueva Vision, 1995.
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The focus of this anthology is the post-1983 democratization of Argentina. It discusses the party system, political institutions, constitution and judicial power, the role of the military, the labor movement, business interests, economic liberalism, foreign relations, and the relationship between politics and economics in the 1990s. Title translation: The new Argentine political matrix.
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Canitrot, Adolfo. “Crisis and Transformation of the Argentine State (1978–1992).” In Democracy, Markets, and Structural Reform in Latin America: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico. Edited by William C. Smith, Carlos H. Acuña, and Eduardo A. Gamarra, 75–104. Coral Gables, FL: North-South Center, 1996.
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The basic thesis of this chapter is that the Argentine state was a root cause of the crisis of the 1980s. Canitrot argues that the state gained enough autonomy from political forces to be perceived as more than an instrument of power or a prize for the winners of recurrent political struggles.
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Cavarozzi, Marcelo. Autoritarismo y democracia (1955–1996): La transición del estado al mercado en la Argentina. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Ariel, 1997.
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This book discusses the changes in the role of the state, society, and the economy that Argentina experienced between 1955 and 1996. In addition to covering the period of military dictatorships, Cavarozzi analyzes the issues facing Argentina after the democratic transition, such as hyperinflation, the downsizing of the state, and currency devaluation. Title translation: Authoritarianism and democracy (1955–1996): The transition from the state to the market in Argentina.
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Levitsky, Steven, and María Victoria Murillo. “Argentina: From Kirchner to Kirchner.” In Latin America’s Struggle for Democracy. Edited by Larry Diamond, Marc F. Plattner, and Diego Abente Burn, 109–123. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008.
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The authors concentrate on the Kirchners’ governments, which have dominated Argentine politics through much of the 2000s. The study discusses the impact of the Kirchners’ policies on democracy and electoral politics in Argentina. The authors attribute the Kirchners’ electoral success to populist public policies and the fragmentation and weakness of the opposition.
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Lewis, Paul H. The Agony of Argentine Capitalism: From Menem to the Kirchners. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, 2009.
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This book discusses the efforts of President Menem and President De la Rúa to push through free trade policies and criticizes the populist policies of Cristina and Néstor Kirchner. The author argues that the Kirchners have sought to extend state control to all aspects of the economy and to redistribute income derived from the most efficient sector, agriculture.
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Palermo, Vicente, and Marcos Novaro. Política y poder en el gobierno de Menem. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Grupo Editorial Norma, 1996.
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The purpose of this work is to analyze the first administration of Carlos Menem (1989–1995). Specifically, it focuses on the crisis that led to his rise, the role of Peronism during his presidency, reform strategies, and his legacy. Title translation: Politics and power in Menem’s government.
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Waisman, Carlos H. “Argentina: Capitalism and Democracy.” In Democracy in Developing Countries: Latin America. 2d ed. Edited by Larry Diamond, Jonathan Hartlyn, Juan J. Linz, and Seymour Martin Lipset, 71–130. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner, 1999.
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This chapter argues that the fate of democracy in Argentina has been highly correlated with the nature of its capitalist institutions. The author concludes that in the case of Argentina, a market economy has been coupled with expanding competitive politics, and the neomercantilist state has given rise to nondemocratic policies.
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Past and Recent Economic Policies

The implementation of neoliberal reforms in the 1990s and the contested nature of their impact on Argentina’s society and economy gave place to a considerable number of academic studies, as well as a revision of past assumptions and theories. Díaz Alejandro’s essays (Díaz Alejandro 1970) are a classic masterpiece and have provided a historical background to discuss Argentina’s economic strategies from the mid-19th to the mid-20th century. The chapter Fanelli and Frenkel 1999 traces Argentina’s historical record of implementation of stabilization packages and reformist attempts inspired by neoliberalism. Likewise, Vacs 1998 takes a historical perspective to assess the relative success of Argentina vis-à-vis Uruguay in implementing neoliberal reforms. Marshall 1988 also provides the historical context by analyzing the characteristics and impact of neoliberal policies under the last military regime (1976–1983), particularly their negative effects on wages and working conditions and benefits. The chapter Gerchunoff and Torre 1997 points to the links between market-oriented reforms and democratic consolidation under the Menem administration, while Lloyd-Sherlock 1997 emphasizes the impact of those reforms on the living conditions and poverty level of the poorest social sectors. From a Gramscian perspective, Buchanan 1997 analyzes the counterhegemonic strategies of subordinate groups to resist neoliberal policies.

Buchanan, Paul G. “Counterhegemonic Strategies in Neoliberal Argentina.” Latin American Perspectives 24.6 (November 1997): 113–132.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X9702400606Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article outlines a strategy of action for subordinate groups confronted by the neoliberal pluralist projects in vogue during the 1990s in Argentina and elsewhere. It applies Gramsci’s often-underappreciated thoughts on counterhegemonic movements to the realities of this conjuncture.
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Díaz Alejandro, Carlos F. Essays on the Economic History of the Argentine Republic. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1970.
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The first two essays of this work summarize the main trends in the Argentine economy since about 1860. The two following look in greater detail at the rural and manufacturing sectors. Finally, the last three discuss the pre-1940 tariff, the evolution of relative prices for capital goods, and postwar inflation and stop-go cycles.
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Fanelli, José M., and Roberto Frenkel. “Argentine Experience with Stabilization and Structural Reform.” In After Neoliberalism: What Next for Latin America? Edited by Lance Taylor, 53–80. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1999.
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This chapter offers an intellectual and historical background for neoliberal policy choices in Argentina. It focuses on cuts in state intervention in the economy; reductions of fiscal deficits; privatization of public enterprises; reductions of import quotas, tariffs, and export subsidies; removal of barriers to foreign capital flow; and increased faith in the private sector.
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Gerchunoff, Pablo, and Juan Carlos Torre. “Argentina: La política de liberalización económica bajo un gobierno de base popular.” In El cambio del papel del estado en América Latina. Edited by Menno Vellinga, 154–199. Mexico City: Siglo XXI Editores, 1997.
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The authors discuss the political context of the economic reforms and economic transformation of the Argentine economy in the 1980s and 1990s. The study focuses on the structural economic reforms undertaken by the Menem administration, including privatizations, commercial liberalization, tax reform, economic stabilization, and the Convertibility Plan. Title translation: Argentina: The politics of economic liberalization under a labor-based government.
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Lloyd-Sherlock, Peter. “Policy, Distribution, and Poverty in Argentina since Re-Democratization.” Latin American Perspectives 24.6 (November 1997): 22–55.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X9702400602Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
In this article, Lloyd-Sherlock examines the economic reforms of the 1990s and their impact on policymaking, income distribution, and poverty in Argentina. It critically examines the effect of neoliberal economic policy on the poorest sectors of Argentine society.
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Margheritis, Ana. Ajuste y reforma en Argentina (1989–1995): La economía política de las privatizaciones. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Grupo Editor Latinoamericano, 1999.
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This book focuses on the institutional and political factors that made privatization policy viable in Argentina only in the early 1990s and not before. The argument highlights the existence of a specific policymaking style under Menem that helped neutralize opposition, an implicit agreement between the public and the private sector about the distribution of costs and benefits of the reform, and the impact of policy networks in facilitating policy implementation. Title translation: Adjustment and reform in Argentina (1989–1995): The political economy of privatizations.
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Marshall, Adriana. Politicas sociales: El modelo neoliberal, Argentina (1976–1983). Buenos Aires, Argentina: Flacso/Legasa, 1988.
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This book examines the economic and social policies adopted in Argentina during the period between 1976 and 1983 and its effects on wage earners. The author argues that such policies had a negative impact on wage earners and describes them as regressive. According to Marshall, a similar and reinforcing trend can be observed in some areas of social policy. Title translation: Social policies: The neoliberal model, Argentina (1976–1983).
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Vacs, Aldo C. “Between Restructuring and Impasse: Liberal Democracy, Exclusionary Policy Making, and Neoliberal Programs in Argentina and Uruguay.” In Deepening Democracy in Latin America. Edited by Kurt von Mettenheim and James Malloy, 137–172. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1998.
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This chapter argues that domestic differences help explain why Argentina’s post-transition administrations were relatively successful in completing the neoliberal political economic restructuring while their Uruguayan counterparts failed to attain this goal.
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Socioeconomic Change

The mixed results of stabilization and free-market policies generated increasing scholarly debate in late 1990s and 2000s. In particular, since then the analytical focus has been on the impact of the market-centered model on poverty and inequality. Cortés 1997 presents a detailed evaluation of these issues, focusing on the dramatic transformations of labor markets in the late 20th century. Altimir and Beccaria 1998 accounts for the structural changes in the type and level of poverty in urban settings, while Minujin and Kessler 1995 addresses the rise of poverty and its root causes. Smith 1990 provides a political economy view of how distributional conflicts are resolved in transitional democracies, with particular emphasis on the Alfonsín administration. Palermo and Collins 1998 also focuses on distributional conflicts, though in reference to a specific policy (the so-called Convertibility Plan) and its political underpinnings. The social and political reactions (or lack of) to that plan and, particularly, to the rise of the poverty rate, are analyzed in Powers 1995. Foradori 1994 is driven by a normative concern: the need to explore new ideas about development that would encourage democratic practices.

Altimir, Oscar, and Luis Beccaria. Efectos de los cambios macroeconómicos y de las reformas sobre la pobreza urbana en la Argentina. San Miguel, Argentina: Instituto de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional de General Sarmiento, 1998.
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This document explores the evolution of urban poverty in Argentina since the mid-1970s, which came about due to changes in the national economy. This work discusses how economic changes and reforms in the 1990s have impacted the level and structure of poverty. Title translation: Effects of macroeconomic changes and reforms on urban poverty in Argentina.
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Cortés, Rosalia. “Argentina: State Policy and the Urban Labor Market.” In Global Restructuring, Employment, and Social Inequality in Urban Latin America. Edited by Richard Tardanico and Rafael Menjívar Larín, 189–210. Coral Gables, FL: North-South Center, 1997.
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This chapter provides a case study of the implications of global transformations and national development policies for urban employment and social inequality in Argentina. The author examines socioeconomic change in labor markets, including privatization, industry and export transformations, growth of precarious and informal employment, and gender realignments.
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Foradori, Carlos M. Pobreza política y el nuevo paradigma en la Argentina. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Grupo Editor Latinoamericano, 1994.
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The author argues for the existence of a new paradigm that surpasses the ideological stagnation that dominated Argentine politics during the 20th century. This new paradigm is characterized by the decentralization of power, increase in citizen participation, changes in political party structures, and the elimination of democratic authoritarianism.
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Minujin, Alberto, and Gabriel Kessler. La nueva pobreza en la Argentina. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Editorial Planeta, 1995.
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This book analyzes the growth of poverty in Argentina during the last few decades of the 20th century. The authors argue that the impoverishment of the middle class was neither a natural event nor the product of a catastrophe, and it has to be analyzed in connection to the debt crisis, the loss of social rights, and the lack of state presence in vulnerable sectors. Title translation: The new poverty in Argentina.
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Palermo, Vincent, and John Collins. “Moderate Populism: A Political Approach to Argentina’s 1991 Convertibility Plan.” Latin American Perspectives 25.4 (July 1998): 36–62.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X9802500406Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article examines the political dynamics of a novel program in Argentine politics during the early 1990s. This plan included, on one hand, populist policies involving distributive benefits without costs and, on the other hand, antipopulist ones aimed at the spreading of costs among sectors with conflicting interests.
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Powers, Nancy R. “The Politics of Poverty in Argentina in the 1990s.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 37.4 (Winter 1995): 89–137.
DOI: 10.2307/166248Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This paper examines the politics of poverty in Argentina in order to understand the muted political response that this issue received during the Menem first presidency. According to Powers, the rise of poverty was a prominent domestic issue in the early 1990s, and yet there was little electoral response and political pressure did not succeed in changing the course of Menem’s policies.
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Smith, William C. “Democracy, Distributional Conflicts and Macroeconomic Policymaking in Argentina, 1983–1989.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 32.2 (Summer 1990): 1–42.
DOI: 10.2307/166007Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article looks at the Alfonsín administration in Argentina and specifically focuses on the macroeconomic policies implemented during this period of economic crisis. Concretely, the Austral Plan as well as Alfonsín’s Keynesian-inspired economic policy is discussed.
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Authoritarianism

Argentina’s record of political violence and instability has generated scholarly concern with the origin and implications of authoritarianism. Rock 1993 relates the emergence of authoritarian tendencies to nationalism and analyzes the far-reaching consequences of this political ideology for contemporary Argentina. Munck 1998 and Munck 1985 center on the last military dictatorship and place the Argentine case in a comparative regional context. Pion-Berlin 1985 focuses on the last few years of that regime to explain the causes of its collapse, namely, the poor economic performance and the ideological cleavages within the military ranks. Smith 1989 is a broad narrative of the political and economic changes and conflicts that supported and, at the same time, undermined authoritarianism in the contemporary period. The question of regime change and shifts between military and civilian governments is directly or indirectly addressed by most works. For instance, both Arceneaux 1997 and McSherry 1997 point out to the institutional basis of military power and their leverage over regime transitions—the latter does so in particular reference to the Alfonsín administration.

Arceneaux, C. L. “Institutional Design, Military Rule, and Regime Transition in Argentina (1976–1983): An Extension of the Remmer Thesis.” Bulletin of Latin American Research 16.3 (1997): 327–350.
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In this essay, the author argues that institutions in military regimes have a significant impact not only on regime durability but also on the level of control the military is likely to exert when it withdraws from rule.
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McSherry, J. Patrice. Incomplete Transition: Military Power and Democracy in Argentina. New York: St. Martin’s, 1997.
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This book analyzes the persistent political impact of institutionalized military power in a country that has officially been under civilian rule since 1983. Examining the presidency of Raul Alfonsín (1983–1989), McSherry shows the struggle that developed between democratizing sectors and the armed forces to define the nature of Argentina’s emerging democracy.
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Munck, Gerardo. Authoritarianism and Democratization: Soldiers and Workers in Argentina, 1976–1983. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1998.
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This book presents a close look at Argentina’s experience of military rule, providing new information on legal and institutional aspects of the Argentine regime and the intricate interaction between military rulers and trade unionists, while offering a model for the study of political regimes in general.
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Munck, Ronaldo. “The ‘Modern’ Military Dictatorship in Latin America: The Case of Argentina (1976–1982).” Latin American Perspectives 12.4 (Autumn 1985): 41–74.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X8501200403Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The focus of this article is the nature and contradictions of the military regime that came to power in Argentina in 1976, with a special emphasis on political economy, the key to an understanding of its trajectory. The context of this article is set by a brief summary of the debates concerning the precise class nature of new military regimes in Latin America.
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Pion-Berlin, David. “The Fall of Military Rule in Argentina, 1976–1983.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 27.2 (Summer 1985): 55–76.
DOI: 10.2307/165718Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This study analyzes the causes of the breakdown of military rule in Argentina, concentrating on the two-year period of 1980–1982. The author argues that the causes for the military’s downfall began two years before the Falklands War. Specifically, loss of faith in economic objectives and the emergence of personal and ideological cleavages within the ranks of the military contributed to the regime’s demise.
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Rock, David. Authoritarian Argentina: The Nationalist Movement, Its History, and Its Impact. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1993.
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This is a comprehensive study of nationalism in Argentina, a fundamentalist movement pledged to violence and a dictatorship that came to a head with the notorious “disappearances” of the 1970s. This radical, right-wing movement has had a profound impact on 20th-century Argentina, leaving its mark on almost all aspects of Argentine life.
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Smith, William C. Authoritarianism and the Crisis of the Argentine Political Economy. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1989.
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In this book, Smith argues that Argentina’s failure to establish a stable and legitimate political order can be traced to the manner in which the political economy has been structured historically around two poles of accumulation, one agrarian and the other urban and industrial, with contradictory relations with the world market.
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Civil-Military Relations

As in other Latin American countries, the transition to democracy in Argentina prompted numerous studies about the reshaping of the role of the military under civilian rule. Huser 2002 engages in an interesting exploration of such a role in state agencies other than the military-related ones and in those bureaucracies that mediate the relationship between social and political actors. McSherry 1997 focuses on the connections between the management of the military capacity and related resources and the efforts to gather support for reformist policies under Menem. Both Munch 1985 and Norden 1990 identify the main changes within the military during the Alfonsín years and how these transformations affected the democratization process—the former emphasizing the setbacks to democratic expansion and consolidation involved in those transformations. Norden 1996 resumes to explore the formation of coalitions within the military and account for the rationale behind military coup attempts. Pion-Berlin 1991 and Pion-Berlin 1997 center on the interplay between governmental policies, the pros and cons of some initiatives, and the military’s attempts to resist or accommodate those initiatives during the 1980s and 1990s.

Huser, Herbert C. Argentine Civil-Military Relations: From Alfonsín to Menem. Washington, DC: National Defense University Press, 2002.
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This work examines the role that the military played in nonmilitary areas within the state apparatus and within relationships between political sectors and civil society. The book analyzes both the Alfonsín and Menem presidencies and then offers observations on the future role of the military in Argentina.
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McSherry, J. Patrice. “Strategic Alliance: Menem and the Military-Security Forces in Argentina.” Latin American Perspectives 24.6 (November 1997): 63–92.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X9702400604Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article argues that Menem drew upon the guardian capabilities of the military, security, and intelligence forces to construct an authoritarian and exclusionary form of democracy within the framework of neoliberalism.
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Munch, Ronaldo. “Democratization and Demilitarization in Argentina, 1982–1985.” Bulletin of Latin American Research 4.2 (1985): 85–93.
DOI: 10.2307/3338318Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This analysis focuses on the period of democratization in Argentina and argues that this process was not without setbacks. It was also characterized by an incomplete settling of accounts with the armed forces. Furthermore, Munch argues that the period has involved a tendency to reduce democracy to the dynamics of parliament and political parties and that the political aspects of democracy have taken precedence over its social components.
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Norden, Deborah L. “Democratic Consolidation and Military Professionalism: Argentina in the 1980s.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 32.3 (Autumn 1990): 151–176.
DOI: 10.2307/166091Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article analyzes three factors relevant to the military’s position during the Alfonsín government: (1) the balance of power between the military and the government at the moment of the 1983 transition; (2) the military policies of the Alfonsín administration; and, finally, (3) the evolution of political thought and action within the military during this time.
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Norden, Deborah L. Military Rebellion in Argentina: Between Coups and Consolidation. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1996.
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This study seeks to explain the advent and development of Argentina’s military uprisings, as well as the constraints that kept organized military opposition from transcending the boundaries of protest. The author argues that the emergence and evolution of rebellion constitute separate phases of military protest that respond to different dynamics.
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Pion-Berlin, David. “Between Confrontation and Accommodation: Military and Government Policy in Democratic Argentina.” Journal of Latin American Studies 23.3 (October 1991): 543–571.
DOI: 10.1017/S0022216X00015844Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The subject of this study is the military policy of the Argentine government of Raul Alfonsín, from 1983 to 1989. The author argues that while many of Alfonsín’s proposals helped to establish civilian control, the manner in which these were presented, linked, and sequenced often harmed relations with the armed forces.
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Pion-Berlin, David. Through Corridors of Power: Institutions and Civil-Military Relations in Argentina. University Park: Pennsylvania State University, 1997.
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This book examines the influence that institutions have had over the implementation of policy in Argentina between 1983 and 1995, revealing that policies can succeed despite military resistance. Pion-Berlin explains how Argentine democratic institutions mediate the differing interests of civilian and military authorities in order to determine whether or not soldiers succeed at defeating policies they oppose.
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Democratization

The return to democratic rule in Argentina in 1983 generated extensive research on the modality of the transition, the challenges created by weak institutional and bureaucratic capacities, the building up of efficient and transparent institutions, and the requisites to achieve democratic consolidation. In particular, the question of governability became the analytical focus in explaining the difficulties of civilian governments to deal with pressing social, economic, and political issues during the 1980s. Dos Santos and Grossi 1991 is a good illustration of that literature; the authors focus on the vicissitudes of dual (political and economic) transitions. The democratic transition also brought human rights violations to the forefront of the discussion and prompted legal processes to clarify and punish those abuses—a topic carefully explored in Crawford 1990. The study of public opinion and changing expectations toward domestic politics, especially during electoral times, is analyzed in Catterberg 1991. The role of specific actors (such as unions and the military), the realignment of traditional and new political forces during the transition, and the redefinition of political allegiances also gathered considerable scholarly attention. Graham-Yooll 1985 and McGuire 1992 are representative of that trend, as is Szusterman 2000, which questions whether the Peronist government led by Menem in the 1990s can be labeled as a new version of populism.

Catterberg, Edgardo. Argentina Confronts Politics: Political Culture and Public Opinion in the Argentine Transition to Democracy. Boulder, CO: Reinner, 1991.
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This book analyzes the political culture and public opinion during Argentina’s transition to democracy. It discusses issues such as individualism versus statism, popular expectations of and attitudes toward democracy, the political party system, the 30 October 1983 elections, and the 1989 presidential elections.
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Crawford, Kathryn L. “Due Obedience and the Rights of Victims: Argentina’s Transition to Democracy.” Human Rights Quarterly 12.1 (1990): 17–52.
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In 1987, the Argentine Supreme Court declared constitutional a law that stated that members of the security forces who had tortured and killed citizens could not be prosecuted if they were acting under orders. This article describes the way in which this law came into being and gives the arguments of the court to enact the law.
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Dos Santos, Mario, and Maria Grossi. “Gobernabilidad en la transición a la democracia en Argentina.” Revista Mexicana de Sociología 53.1 (1991): 293–304.
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The authors of this study analyze the issue of governability and the factors that determine regime stability in Latin America, with a focus on Argentina. The study argues that the main threats to democratic institutions stem from the difficulty of maintaining democratic power in light of the presence of antidemocratic forces and the inability of governments to regulate the economy. Title translation: Governability during the transition to democracy in Argentina.
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Graham-Yooll, Andrew. “Argentina: The State of Transition, 1983–85.” Third World Quarterly 7.3 (1985): 573–593.
DOI: 10.1080/01436598508419855Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article looks at Argentina’s democratic transition in contrast to its military-ruled neighbors, reviews the political literature spawned by scholars and journalists, examines the present military frame of mind, offers a personal view of Argentine society, and concludes with a short discussion of the composition of the country’s leading political parties, guerrilla organizations, and the role of the Left.
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McGuire, James W. “Union Political Tactics and Democratic Consolidation in Alfonsin’s Argentina, 1983–1989.” Latin American Research Review 27.1 (1992): 37–74.
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This article analyzes the relationship between the Peronist union leadership and one of Argentina’s main political parties, the Partido Justicialista, during the period of democratic transition and, in particular, the Alfonsín presidency.
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Szusterman, Celia. “Carlos Saúl Menem: Variations on the Theme of Populism.” Bulletin of Latin American Research 19.2 (2000): 193–206.
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This article examines the appropriateness of the labels neopopulist and/or neoliberal in the Argentine context in the 1990s. It is argued that describing Carlos Menem as either neopopulist or neoliberal obscures rather than illuminates the vicissitudes along the path to establishing the institutions of liberal democracy, a commitment the Argentine electorate made in 1983.
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Electoral Politics and Political Parties

The procedural dimension of democratization (i.e., elections) has been one of the most dynamic areas of research since the mid-1980s. Regular and transparent elections are deemed as one of the requirements of any democratic regime. Therefore, a considerable number of specialized works have been published on the quality of the electoral process, the changing nature of political allegiances and tactics, the increasing volatility of electoral behavior, and the transformation of the political party system. Some studies focus on certain periods, such as the first administration after the transition to democracy and the first instance of transfer of power between the two traditional majoritarian parties (Radical and Peronist) in 1989. This is the case of De Riz 1990, as well as Weisbord 1993. The latter provides an innovative account of the use of media for electoral purposes. A critical view of the structural characteristics and pervasive problems of the Argentine electoral system is to be found in Calvo and Abal Medina 2001, while Escolar 2002 points out to incipient—though profound—transformations in electoral behavior. Brusco, et al. 2004 explores the specific issue of vote buying and relates this practice to old patterns of political clientelism. Democratization not only introduced new rules of the political game but also made evident the weaknesses of political institutions and the crisis of political representation. The bases of support of traditional political parties changed considerably in the last thirty years and electorates became increasingly disappointed with the performance of democratic governments. As the rest of Latin America, Argentina moved toward a more fragmented political party system. However, despite generalized and internal fragmentation, Peronism managed to recreate its hegemonic position. Manzetti 1993 ably relates these trends to Argentina’s decline in the contemporary period, integrating the analysis of power politics, political culture, and institutions. Drawing upon a novel methodology, Lupu and Stokes 2009 examines the class-based support of the main political parties in a long-term historical perspective. Stokes 2005 further analyzes the functioning of machine politics and its implications for democratic accountability. The emergence and evolution of small parties of the Right during the 1980s is analyzed in Gallo 1990.

Brusco, Valeria, Marcelo Nazareno, and Susan C. Stokes. “Vote Buying in Argentina.” Latin American Research Review 39.2 (2004): 66–88.
DOI: 10.1353/lar.2004.0022Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article suggests that vote buying is an effective strategy for mobilizing electoral support among low-income people when parties are able to monitor voters’ actions, make reasonably accurate inferences about how individuals voted, and credibly threaten to punish voters who defect from the implicit clientelist bargain. The findings point toward ballot reform as one way to reduce vote buying in Argentina.
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Calvo, Ernesto, and Juan Manuel Abal Medina, eds. El federalismo electoral argentino: Sobrerrepresentación, reforma política y gobierno dividido en la Argentina. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Editorial Universitaria de Buenos Aires, 2001.
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This book provides a critical analysis of the electoral system in Argentina. Specifically, it discusses problems of overrepresentation of certain areas, federalism, proportional representation, gerrymandering, and decentralization. Title translation: Argentine electoral federalism: Overrepresentation, political reform, and divided government.
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De Riz, Liliana. Argentina: El comportamiento electoral durante la transición democrática, 1983–1990. Buenos Aires, Argentina: CEDESA, 1990.
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De Riz discusses the evolution of political parties, public opinion, and electoral results during the transition to democracy in Argentina. Much of the work focuses on the presidency of Raul Alfonsín and continues into the 1989 presidential elections when Peronist Carlos Menem came to power. Title translation: Argentina: Electoral behavior during the democratic transition, 1983–1990.
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Escolar, Marcelo, Ernesto Calvo, Natalia Calcagno, and Sandra Minvielle. “Últimas imágenes del naufragio: Las elecciones del 2001 en la Argentina.” Desarrollo Económico 42.165 (2002): 25–44.
DOI: 10.2307/3455975Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article analyzes the transfer of votes from traditional political forces from 1999 to protest votes and other electoral forces in 2001. The findings show a greater transfer of votes from Alianza toward other political parties and more moderate transfers toward blank votes from Peronism or the important vote transfer from Acción por la República. Title translation: Last images of the shipwreck: The 2001 elections in Argentina.
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Gallo, Ezequiel. Electoral Evolution of the Political Parties of the Right: Argentina, 1983–1989. New York: Columbia University–NYU Consortium, 1990.
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Gallo discusses the electoral evolution of right-wing political parties during the period of postmilitary Argentina. Gallo characterizes this time period as one of political party consolidation and evolution but mainly dominated by left-wing and center-left parties. In this work, Gallo focuses on smaller right-wing political groups.
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Lupu, Noam, and Susan C. Stokes. “The Social Bases of Political Parties in Argentina, 1912–2003.” Latin American Research Review 44.1 (2009): 58–87.
DOI: 10.1353/lar.0.0079Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article explores the social bases of Argentina’s political parties using an original database and new methods of ecological inference that yield more reliable results than previous analyses. The first party system (1912–1940) was not consistently class based, but the second (after 1946) was, with the Radical Party representing the middle classes, and the Peronists, the workers and the poor.
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Manzetti, Luigi. Institutions, Parties, and Coalitions in Argentine Politics. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1993.
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The author scans the political culture and the power conflicts that define Argentina in the early 21st century. He uses a variety of sources, including public opinion data, voting behavior, and detailed interviews with policymakers, business leaders, and analysts. Manzetti argues that the weakness of democratic institutions has contributed to Argentina’s bitter political strife and socioeconomic decline over the past sixty years.
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Stokes, Susan C. “Perverse Accountability: A Formal Model of Machine Politics.” American Political Science Review 99.3 (2005): 315–325.
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This article engages with the literature on vote buying, clientelism, and democratic governance. It offers a model of how machine politics works in Argentina by highlighting that political parties often monitor and influence voters by rewarding support or punishing defection—a practice named as perverse accountability.
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Weisbord, Silvio R. A Sign of the Times: Television and Electoral Politics in Argentina, 1983–1989. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame, 1993.
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This book examines the use of television as a political campaign tool in the 1983–1989 elections in Argentina. Initially, politicians’ lack of experience in exploiting the medium led to a scramble for air time right before the election. Within a few years, television became the dominant form of political communication.
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Peronism

Peronism has always generated scholarly concern. The difficulties to understand its ambiguous nature, historical evolution, and central role in Argentine politics have been a continuous stimulus to academic investigation. Several studies focus on the electoral performance of this political party over several decades and the evolution of its constituency and ideology. The underlying concern of most works is with explaining the remarkable capacity of Peronism to redefine itself and preserve a dominant position vis-à-vis other political forces. Brennan 1998 is a comprehensive and rigorous account of Peronism’s trajectory and influence on Argentine politics. Both Corradi 1974 and Ciria 1974 take a historical approach; the former examines the internal composition of Peronist coalitions, while the latter investigates the apparent contradictory dynamics within the party. From a different perspective, Karush and Chamosa 2010 provides a cultural history of Peronism focused on ideas, identity, mass culture, and social practices. McGuire 1997 explains how the party’s performance and transformation contributed to shape the overall record and profile of democracy in the 20th century. Crassweller 1987 is an analysis of the cultural underpinnings of Perón’s relationship with his followers. Di Tella 1983 is a study of the factors that led to Perón’s return to power in the 1970s and the party’s internal conflicts that led to the collapse of the government soon after his death. James 1988 provides an account of the early Peronism up to the mid-1970s, with an emphasis on the role of the labor movement in the evolution and performance of the party.

Brennan, James P., ed. Peronism and Argentina. Wilmington, DE: SR Books, 1998.
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This book examines the history, origins, and present-day directions of Peronism. It explores how this movement has been interpreted by intellectuals and how it has influenced Argentine politics and civil society over the last half-century.
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Ciria, Alberto. “Peronism Yesterday and Today.” Latin American Perspectives 1.3 (1974): 21–41.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X7400100302Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
Alberto Ciria’s essay provides a historical background to Peronism. The socialist content of populist mobilizations, the persistent efficacy of the urban guerrillas, and the contradictions that managing a dependent capitalist economy produces are among the principal weaknesses of Peronism discussed in the article.
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Corradi, Juan E. “Argentina and Peronism: Fragments of the Puzzle.” Latin American Perspectives 1.3 (1974): 3–20.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X7400100301Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The author looks particularly at the role of agrarian and industrial classes and their internal differences in an effort to clarify the meaning of Peronism through historical periods. The various essays that constitute this article attempt to clarify the meaning of Peronism in the context of Argentine history and society.
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Crassweller, Robert. Peron and the Enigmas of Argentina. New York: Norton, 1987.
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In this book, Crassweller argues that Perón’s success and failure and his ascent into legendry were in part the consequences of a similar intuitive identity and community that united the leader and the majority of the nation in a tenacious relationship of unusual loyalty. He further argues that Perón’s achievements flowed from his personification of Argentina’s Hispanic and Creole civilization.
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Di Tella, Guido. Argentina under Perón, 1973–1976: The Nation’s Experience with a Labour-based Government. New York: St. Martin’s, 1983.
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The main purpose of this book is to analyze some of the economic, political, and social developments of Perón’s second presidency (1973–1976). Di Tella demonstrates that Peronism, as a unifying and essentially centrist movement, came under the control of a right-wing group who managed to lose the support of the usual Peronist sectors and yet, because they were Peronists, failed to be recognized as allies by the traditional right wing.
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James, Daniel. Resistance and Integration: Peronism and the Argentine Working Class, 1946–1976. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
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This book explores the relationship between the working class during the 1943–1955 period and seeks to identify the roots of working-class identification with Peronism. It also traces the development of Peronism within the labor unions in the 1955–1973 period, with emphasis on labor’s response to the military, the Frondizi government, and the influence of Augusto Vandor, the metal workers’ leader.
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Karush, Matthew B., and Oscar Chamosa, eds. The New Cultural History of Peronism: Power and Identity in Mid-Twentieth-Century Argentina. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2010.
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The contributors of this volume describe how Perón’s regime helped produce new ideas of national and collective identity and how Argentines pursued their interests through their engagement with the Peronist project. The essays address topics including mass culture and melodrama, folk music, pageants, social respectability, and architecture. They examine the experiences of women, indigenous groups, middle-class anti-Peronists, internal migrants, academics, and workers.
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McGuire, James W. Peronism without Perón: Unions, Parties, and Democracy in Argentina. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1997.
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Within an analysis of Peronism from 1943 to 1995, the author pays special attention to the 1962–1966 and 1984–1988 periods, when some Peronist politicians and union leaders tried, but failed, to strengthen the party structure. By identifying the forces that led to these efforts of party building and by analyzing the counterforces that thwarted them, he shows how these failures have shaped Argentina’s experience with democracy.
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Early and Late Peronism

Within the study of Peronism, some sources concentrate on specific dimensions of the topic and/or specific periods in the evolution of the party, such as Little 1973, an article on the performance of Peronism in elections in the mid-1940s and 1950s; Elena 2007, on the links between economic policy and politics under Perón’s first presidency; Brennan and Rougier 2009, on the formation of a national bourgeoisie under Peronism; and James 1976, on the role of a left-wing stream within Peronism in the 1955–1975 period. Welihofer 1977 focuses on the roots of popular support for Perón’s power. The most recent transformations of Peronism since democratization are studied in Levitsky 2001, which points to both continuity and change in the party’s basis of support and organizational structure and, in particular, the redefinition of the role of unions within the party. Auyero 2001 analyzes the legacy of clientelistic practices on the relationship between politicians and low-class members of the Peronist party in the early 21st century. Mascarell shows the adaptation strategies of the party to different economic scenarios (and, consequently, different political and economic resources): those that characterized the administrations of presidents Menem and Kirchner.

Auyero, Javier. Poor People’s Politics: Peronist Survival Networks and the Legacy of Evita. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2001.
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This book employs notions of clientelism and patronage to analyze the political practices of the Peronist party among shantytown dwellers in contemporary Argentina. Javier Auyero demonstrates the ways in which local politicians present vital favors to the poor and how the poor perceive and evaluate these favors.
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Brennan, James P., and Marcelo Rougier. The Politics of National Capitalism: Peronism and the Argentine Bourgeoisie, 1946–1976. State College: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2009.
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In this book, the authors provide a political history of Argentina’s national bourgeoisie. The authors offer a history of the national bourgeoisie’s main association, the Confederación General Económica, the Argentine bourgeoisie’s relationship with the state, and the relationship of the bourgeoisie to Perón and the Peronist movement.
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Elena, Eduardo. “Peronist Consumer Politics and the Problem of Domesticating Markets in Argentina, 1943–1955.” Hispanic American Historical Review 87.1 (2007): 111–149.
DOI: 10.1215/00182168-2006-089Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The article explores the political controversies of state campaigns to defend consumers against unjust commerce during the era of Argentine President Juan Domingo Perón. It addresses the competing attitudes toward commercial morality that became prevalent in the Argentine society and the praxis of consumer politics.
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James, Daniel. “The Peronist Left, 1955–1975.” Journal of Latin American Studies 8.2 (1976): 273–296.
DOI: 10.1017/S0022216X00022008Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article focuses on the political ideology of the different currents that have made up the Peronist Left since 1955. It highlights the main features of this Left in the 1955–1973 period and analyzes the main currents within it. The events of the early 1970s (i.e., Perón’s third presidency) are also analyzed within this context.
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Levitsky, Steven. “An ‘Organized Disorganization’: Informal Organisation and the Persistence of Local Party Structures in Argentine Peronism.” Journal of Latin American Studies 33.1 (2001): 29–66.
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This article attempts to fill the void in research on the organization of the Justicialista Party. Challenging accounts of the contemporary Justicialista Party as a weak, personalistic organization, Levitsky argues that the party maintains a powerful base-level infrastructure with deep roots in working- and lower-class society.
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Little, Walter. “Electoral Aspects of Peronism, 1946–1954.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 15.3 (1973): 267–284.
DOI: 10.2307/174967Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The main aspects of national elections between 1946 and 1954 are discussed in this article. The author examines the problems encountered and the methods used in analyzing electoral data. He also describes the support base of Peronism as reflected in voting patterns and discusses the relationship between national elections and the Peronist regime.
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Mascarell, Luciano R. Peronismo or Peronism: The Strategy of Dominance: Fiscal Federalism and the Politics of Coalition-Building in Argentina. Lambert Academic, 2012.
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This book argues that dominant parties, when facing economic constraints, become risk averse and invest in those voters who are isolated from opposition parties because their bargaining power is low and their support may be achieved with fewer resources. The analysis focuses on the strategies taken by two Argentine presidents: Carlos Menem and Néstor Kirchner.
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Welihofer, E. Spencer. “Peronism in Argentina: The Social Base of the First Regime, 1946–1955.” Journal of Developing Areas 11.3 (1977): 335–356.
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The author discusses and critically analyzes the literature on Peronism’s popular support. Specifically, he discusses the hypotheses presented by Smith, Little, and Canton on Perón’s support in 1946. He concludes that Peronist support in 1946 was generally widespread and not strongly associated with any particular group, while support for the opposition Unión Democrática was weakly associated with the urban and rural middle classes.
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The 2001 Crisis

December 2001 was a watershed in Argentine political and economic history. The magnitude of the crisis was unprecedented. President De la Rúa’s resignation was only the corollary of mounting social pressures, institutional paralysis, political violence, and economic disarray. The default on foreign debt a few days later was the financial manifestation of the collapse of a politico-economic model. The crisis of expectations showed the public’s deep anger and distrust toward political elites. Godio 2002 offers an annotated chronicle of the events leading to the crisis. This complements well the thoughtful analysis by Epstein and Pion-Berlin 2006 on the origins, unfolding, and consequences of the crisis. Chudnovsky and López 2007 contextualizes the crisis in the country’s long-term, relatively unsuccessful quest for sustained economic growth, of which the 2001 juncture is one of the most salient episodes and source of lessons. Calcagno 2003 traces the debacle to the implementation of neoliberal reforms and offers a critical view of alternative (largely unexplored) strategies. Vilas 2005 and Vilas 2007 explain the crisis by reference to the impact of reforms on levels of poverty and inequality, while Llanos and Margheritis 2006 explores a relatively neglected variable: the role of presidential leadership. Carranza 2005 assesses the explanatory power of domestic versus foreign variables, that is, whether the causes and responsibility of the crisis lie with governmental decisions or with policy recommendations of international financial institutions, while Levitsky and Murillo 2006 links the radical reforms of the 1990s to the 2001 collapse and examines the political and institutional consequences of these events.

Calcagno, Alfredo E. Argentina: Derrumbe neoliberal y proyecto nacional. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Ediciones Le Monde Diplomatique, 2003.
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This book summarizes the period of Argentine history characterized by neoliberal economic reforms. The author is highly critical of this economic model and attributes the economic crisis of 2001 to this model. The book concludes by criticizing the current political establishment for lack of determination in pursuing alternative development models. Title translation: Argentina: Neoliberal collapse and national project.
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Carranza, Mario E. “Poster Child or Victim of Imperialist Globalization? Explaining Argentina’s December 2001 Political Crisis and Economic Collapse.” Latin American Perspectives 32.6 (2005): 65–89.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X05281114Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The purpose of this article is to challenge the view from Washington that Argentina’s economic crisis was Argentina’s fault for not implementing the right macroeconomic policies. Instead, the author argues that the neoliberal economic policies implemented by the Argentine government generated the deepest economic slump in Argentine history.
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Chudnovsky, Daniel, and Andrés López. The Elusive Quest for Growth in Argentina. New York and Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.
DOI: 10.1057/9780230604278Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
Chudnovsky and López analyze two episodes of growth, 1964–1974 and 1991–1998, that proved unsustainable, as well as the 2001 crisis. This book seeks to identify the lessons about what went right and wrong in Argentina and contribute to the debate about the virtues and failures of the postwar development consensus and the Washington consensus.
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Epstein, Edward, and David Pion-Berlin, ed. Broken Promises? The Argentine Crisis and Argentine Democracy. Lanham, MD: Lexington, 2006.
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This volume addresses key questions about the 2001 Argentine economic crisis: what caused it, how it happened, and what the solution was. It traces both the political and economic origins of the crisis, considers the reactions of Argentina’s security forces during difficult times, and reflects on the responses of Argentine society.
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Godio, Julio. Argentina: En la crisis está la solución; La crisis global desde las elecciones de octubre de 2001 hasta la asunción de Duhalde. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Editorial Biblos, 2002.
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This book has been written concurrently with the events it discusses. It can be described as a document-guide to organize and narrate the main events that occurred in Argentina from the beginning of 2001 and that deepened after 19 and 20 December of that year. Title translation: Argentina: The solution is in the crisis: The global crisis from the October 2001 elections until the ascendance of Duhalde.
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Levitsky, Steven, and María Victoria Murillo. Argentine Democracy: The Politics of Institutional Weakness. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2006.
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This book examines the links between 1990s economic growth and the 2001 collapse. The book explores tensions between radical economic reform and democracy, political parties and contemporary crises of representation, links between subnational and national politics, and the transformation of state-society relations in the postcorporatist era.
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Llanos, Mariana, and Ana Margheritis. “Why Do Presidents Fail? Political Leadership and the Argentine Crisis, 1999–2001.” Studies in Comparative International Development 40.4 (2006): 77–103.
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This article explores the institutional sources of the 2001 Argentine crisis. It focuses on President Fernando de la Rúa’s leadership and whether his failure was characteristic of an inflexible tendency toward unilateralism, isolationism, and an inability to compromise and persuade. The authors argue that de la Rúa’s performance discouraged cooperation and led to decision-making paralysis and, ultimately, a crisis of governance.
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Vilas, Carlos M. “Pobreza, desigualdad y sustentabilidad democrática: El ciclo corto de la crisis Argentina.” Revista Mexicana de Sociología 67.2 (2005): 229–269.
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This article cites that poverty and inequality increased in the aftermath of the 2001 economic crisis and argues that the adoption in late 2001 of a series of monetary and financial policies led to social protests and ultimately the collapse of the government in the face of popular agitation. Title translation: Poverty, inequality, and democratic sustainability: The short cycle of the Argentine crisis.
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Vilas, Carlos M. “Neoliberal Meltdown and Social Protest: Argentina, 2001–2002.” In Imperialism, Neoliberalism, and Social Struggles in Latin America. Edited by Richard A. Dello Buono and Jose Bell Lara, 119–142. Leiden, The Netherlands, and Boston: Brill, 2007.
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In this chapter, the author argues that as a result of the macroeconomic design implemented for more than a decade, poverty and social inequality increased throughout the 1990s in Argentina and culminated in 2001–2002 with an extraordinary political mobilization that brought down the government.
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Social Protest: Antecedents

The recent work on political mobilization has to be contextualized as part of an extensive literature on the human rights struggle in general and the organization called Madres de Plaza de Mayo in particular. On this institution, Ardetti 1999 is a well-documented account of the motivations leading to mothers of disappeared and tortured people under the dictatorship to claim justice. Fermenia and Gil 1987 also presents background information and an analysis of the role of Madres in the collapse of the military regime and subsequent democratic transition. Borland 2006 explains why and how this organization has become a political actor with a constant presence in domestic politics since the 1980s. Also, on key political actors, James 1981 presents an analysis of the potential and real autonomy and mobilization capacity of the working class since the early 1950s. Villalón 2007 traces the emergence of some social movements back to the early 1990s and relates the phenomenon to the parallel discrediting of traditional institutions such as political parties and unions. A complementary argument is offered by Brysk 1994, an account of the movement for the defense of human rights, which can be seen as an antecedent to later social movements. Auyero 1999 provides a distinctive angle by looking at the possibilities and limits of social mobilization; in particular, he examines how clientelism may undermine social organization and substantive political participation. Faulk 2011 uses two case studies to illustrate new forms of mobilization and protest of new groups that, at the same time, defy and help to redefine institutional practices.

Ardetti, Rita. Searching for Life: The Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo and the Disappeared Children of Argentina. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999.
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This book traces the courageous plight of the Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo, a group of women who challenged the ruthless dictatorship that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983. Ardetti has conducted extensive interviews with twenty Grandmothers and twenty-five others connected with their work; her book is a testament to the courage, persistence, and strength of these women.
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Auyero, Javier. “‘From the Client’s Point(s) of View’: How Poor People Perceive and Evaluate Political Clientelism.” Theory and Society 28.2 (1999): 297–334.
DOI: 10.1023/A:1006905214896Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article analyzes the effort made by popular organized groups to bypass traditional mechanisms of political cooperation and the varying vulnerability of local associations to clientelist penetration. Furthermore, political clientelism is examined as a form of atomization and fragmentation of the electorate as a way of inhibiting collective organization and discouraging real political participation.
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Borland, Elizabeth. “Mature Resistance of Argentina’s Madres de Plaza de Mayo.” In Latin American Social Movements: Globalization, Democratization, and Transnational Networks. Edited by Hank Johnson and Paul Almeida, 115–130. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2006.
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This chapter seeks to address the question of how the Madres de la Plaza de Mayo have remained relevant actors in politics by chronicling the contemporary work of the Madres and documenting their presence in the progressive movements organizing modern Argentina.
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Brysk, Alison. The Politics of Human Rights in Argentina: Protest, Change, and Democratization. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1994.
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This book extends the theoretical “new social movement” perspective to a theory of symbolic politics in which changes in agenda and challenges to legitimacy transformed both state and society. This approach explains why the very strategies that enabled the Argentine human rights movement to survive dictatorship and to catalyze sweeping reforms have limited the movement’s ability to truly institutionalize human rights in the Argentina of the early 21st century.
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Faulk, Karen A. “The Walls of the Labyrinth: Impunity, Corruption, and the Limits of Politics in Contemporary Argentina.” PhD diss., University of Michigan, 2011.
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This dissertation looks at contemporary forms of social protest in Argentina, focusing on Memoria Activa and Cooperativa BAUEN. It demonstrates how these groups at once conform to and challenge codified forms of institutional practice and engage with a labyrinthine system of public administration in what is fundamentally a mutually transformative process of continual generation that defines and redefines the limits and boundaries of political action.
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Fermenia, Nora A., and Carlos A. Gil. “Argentina’s Mothers of Plaza de Mayo: The Mourning Process from Junta to Democracy.” Feminist Studies 13.1 (1987): 9–18.
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This article provides a detailed background of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo. It describes their beginnings during the military dictatorship as a result of the countless individuals that were kidnapped. The author then analyzes their role in the collapse of military rule and their importance in the years of postmilitary democratic consolidation.
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James, Daniel. “Rationalisation and Working Class Responses: The Context and Limits of Factory Floor Activity in Argentina.” Journal of Latin American Studies 13.2 (1981): 375–402.
DOI: 10.1017/S0022216X00013791Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article analyzes the attempts made by employers and governments from the early 1950s on to rationalize production arrangements within Argentine society and to restructure the balance of forces on the factory floor. According to James, this rationalization impacts the possibilities of autonomous rank-and-file activity and the position of the trade union bureaucracy.
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Villalón, Roberta. “Neoliberalism, Corruption, and Legacies of Contention: Argentina’s Social Movements, 1993–2006.” Latin American Perspectives 34.2 (2007): 139–156.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X06299083Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article discusses the innovative grassroots wave of social and political contention that spread throughout Argentina beginning in 1993. It describes this wave as a heterogeneous mass of unemployed and otherwise disadvantaged citizens creating alternative means of dissent and organizations that displaced traditional institutions, such as unions and political parties, as the main channels of societal representation.
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Recent Political Mobilization

One of the most visible consequences of the 2001 crisis was the emergence of social movements and protests voicing citizens’ discontent with political institutions and leaders. Those manifestations adopted various forms and had a differential impact. They all contributed to call scholars’ and practitioners’ attention to the social dimension of the crisis and new forms of popular mobilization. Alvarez Teijeiro, et al. 2002 analyzes how the media helped to amplify those voices. On the most recent social movements, both Lodola 2005 and Giarracca and Teubal 2001 investigate the mobilization of the unemployed—the former to analyze clientelistic networks through which governmental responses are implemented, the latter to offer a novel approach to the topic that incorporates a gender perspective; this argument overlaps with Petras 2001, which centers on the urban unemployed and aims at drawing lessons from the Argentine case for other Latin American countries. Gender perspectives have expanded in the last few years. A good illustration is Borland and Sutton 2007, which explores the connection among crisis, disruption of daily practices, and women’s mobilization. As for the post-2001 crisis mobilization, Armony and Armony 2005 presents an insightful analysis of discourses that links collective behavior in critical junctures to the myth of national identity. Auyero 2006 also addresses the construction of shared meanings and beliefs in times of intense mobilization; the author’s analysis is based on two case studies of protests during the 1990s. Again, a feminist perspective is offered by Sutton 2007 to highlight the role of women as the ones who embodied the political resistance and activism in the aftermath of the 2001 crisis.

Alvarez Teijeiro, Carlos, Marcela Farré, and Damián Fernández Pedemonte. Medios de comunicación y protesta social en la crisis Argentina: Diciembre 2001. Buenos Aires, Argentina: Konrad-Adenaur-Stiftung: La Crujia, 2002.
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This book analyzes the news coverage of the events of 19 and 20 December 2001 and aims to explain the role played by mass media in the origin and development of social mobilization during the Argentine economic and political crisis of 2001. Title translation: Mass media and social protest in the Argentine crisis: December 2001.
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Armony, Ariel C., and Victor Armony. “Indictments, Myths, and Citizen Mobilization in Argentina: A Discourse Analysis.” Latin American Perspectives and Society 47.4 (2005): 27–54.
DOI: 10.1353/lap.2005.0041Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
Based on a discourse analysis of Internet forums and presidential speeches, this article argues that the Argentine crisis cannot be fully grasped without considering the link between collective behavior and ingrained conceptions of national identity.
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Auyero, Javier. “Moral Politics of Argentine Crowds.” In Latin American Social Movements: Globalization, Democratization, and Transnational Networks. Edited by Hank Johnson and Paul Almeida, 147–162. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2006.
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This study reconstructs protesters’ actions, collective beliefs, and shared self-understandings during two recent contentious episodes in contemporary Argentina, the 1993 Santiagazo and the 1996 pueblada (popular mobilization) in Cutral Có.
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Borland, Elizabeth, and Barbara Sutton. “Quotidian Disruption and Women’s Activism in Times of Crisis, Argentina, 2002–2003.” Gender and Society 21.5 (2007): 700–722.
DOI: 10.1177/0891243207306383Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The authors draw on ethnographic observations and analyze forty-four in-depth interviews with activist women in Argentina to explore their responses to quotidian disruption. The authors show that the Argentine crisis challenged everyday practices and expectations that were often gendered, fostering activism that drew on previous social frameworks while also creating new ones.
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Giarracca, Norma, and Miguel Teubal. “Crisis and Agrarian Protest in Argentina: The Movimiento Mujeres Agropecuarias en Lucha.” Latin American Perspectives 28 (November 2001): 38–53.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X0102800604Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The development of the mass urban unemployed workers’ movement in Argentina challenges the assumption of the atomized impotent urban poor, a case worth exploring for its innovative features and its explosive possibilities for the rest of Latin America. Entire issue available online.
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Lodola, Germán. “Protesta popular y redes clientelares en la Argentina: El reparto federal del Plan Trabajar (1996–2001).” Desarrollo Económico 44.176 (2005): 515–536.
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This work presents a statistical analysis of the distributive determinants of the Plan Trabajar to the Argentine provinces in the period 1996–2001. The results indicate that the creation of this plan of emergency employment was a consequence of the decision to fight against growing unemployment. Title translation: Popular protest and client networks in Argentina: The Plan Trabajar, 1996–2001.
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Petras, James. “Unemployed Workers’ Movement in Argentina.” Economic and Political Weekly 36.45 (2001): 4265–4270.
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This article explores the contemporary urban unemployed workers in Argentina. The author suggests that this group of individuals challenges existing assumptions about urban poverty and provides explosive possibilities for the rest of urban Latin America.
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Sutton, Barbara. “Poner el cuerpo: Women’s Embodiment and Political Resistance in Argentina.” Latin American Politics and Society 49.3 (2007): 129–162.
DOI: 10.1353/lap.2007.0034Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article explores the relationship between women’s embodiment and political resistance in Argentina during 2002–2003. It analyzes how women construct embodied subjectivities through their activist practices and how they define poner el cuerpo in terms of collective protest and daily activist work, coherence between words and actions, embodied sacrifice, and risk taking and struggle.
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Selected Public Policy Works

This section is intended to provide a sample of the numerous works on Argentine policies. As the previous sections, it does not include a comprehensive list of annotations but a selective one that relates to the main topics in this essay and is indicative of trends in recent academic research. Spiller and Tommasi 2007 is an account of the impact of political institutions on public policymaking; the authors identify a number of practices that discourage cooperation and set obstacles to efficient policymaking. Other works in this section cover specific topics or dimensions of policy. Falleti 2010 focuses on decentralization policies; through a comparative account of four countries, she examines the impact of these policies on the resources, autonomy, and capacity of local governments. Corbacho 1998 shows that recent constitutional reforms have accentuated a historical trait of the Argentine political system: the concentration of decision-making power in the executive branch of government. Giraudy 2007 focuses on the motivations and far-reaching implications of emergency employment programs. Lo Vuolo 2002 is representative of a growing literature on social policy; it analyzes the reform of the Argentine social security system and potential consequences in reference to the Chilean model. Auyero 2012 provides an ethnographic and sociological account of the political implications of waiting, a disciplinary practice that poor sectors endure when seeking social services from state institutions. Pini and Cigliutti 1999 investigates educational reform and places it in the broader context of international and domestic trends on social participation and democratization. Starr 1997 analyzes the factors that made a fixed exchange rate system viable (and relatively successful) in Argentina in the 1990s and how some of its features undermined the stability of the supporting political coalition.

Auyero, Javier. Patients of the State: The Politics of Waiting in Argentina. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2012.
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This sociological account of the extended wait that poor people seeking social services must endure is based on ethnographic research in the waiting area of the main welfare office in Buenos Aires. Javier Auyero argues that while waiting, the poor learn the opposite of citizenship. They learn to be patients of the state. They absorb the message that they should be patient and keep waiting, because there is nothing else that they can do.
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Corbacho, Alejandro L. “Reformas constitucionales y modelos de decisión en la democracia Argentina, 1984–1994.” Desarrollo Económico 37.148 (1998): 591–616.
DOI: 10.2307/3467413Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This work analyzes the constitutional reforms at the federal and provincial levels and shows that this process has altered the equilibrium of power by concentrating power in the executive branch. Title translation: Constitutional reforms and decision models in the Argentine democracy, 1984–1994.
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Falleti, Tulia G. Decentralization and Subnational Politics in Latin America. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511777813Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
Tulia G. Falleti explains the trajectories of decentralization processes and their markedly different outcomes in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico. She shows that decentralizing reforms do not necessarily enhance the resources, authority, and capacity of subnational officials relative to the center.
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Giraudy, Agustina. “The Distributive Politics of Emergency Employment Programs in Argentina (1993–2002).” Latin American Research Review 42.2 (2007): 33–55.
DOI: 10.1353/lar.2007.0021Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
The results of this study challenge the assumption that emergency employment programs have been exclusively used as clientelistic handouts to buy people’s votes, and point to the necessity of looking at institutional, social, and economic variables to better understand the criteria used by federal politicians to distribute means-tested programs.
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Lo Vuolo, Ruben M. “Ideology and the New Social Security in the Argentine.” In Exclusions and Engagement: Social Policy in Latin America. Edited by Christopher Abel and Colin M. Lewis, 208–223. London: University of London, 2002.
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This chapter argues that the mixed design of the Argentine pension reform model is a strategy geared to ultimately setting up what Lo Vuolo describes as a New Pension Orthodoxy similar to the Chilean model.
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Pini, Monica, and Sonia Cigliutti. “Participatory Reforms and Democracy: The Case of Argentina.” Theory into Practice 38.4 (1999): 196–202.
DOI: 10.1080/00405849909543854Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article uses Argentina as an example to explore issues of participatory reform and democracy, discussing the national and international background of Argentina’s educational reform and describing the Argentinean educational system and sociocultural realities that create the local context of reform.
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Spiller, Pablo T., and Mariano Tommasi. The Institutional Foundations of Public Policy in Argentina. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511818219Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This book revolves around the development of a framework for the comparative analysis of the impact of political institutions on public policies. Using this framework, the authors argue that political institutions in Argentina induce a noncooperative policymaking process that is unable to produce the political agreements necessary to sustain orderly public policies.
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Starr, Pamela K. “Government Coalitions and the Viability of Currency Boards: Argentina under the Cavallo Plan.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 39.2 (1997): 83–133.
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The purpose of this essay is to illuminate the politico-economic foundations of the Cavallo Plan, the early successes of some of these measures, and how those foundations threatened to destroy the economic strategy. The essay outlines the characteristics of a currency board, describes how the Argentine version of it operated, examines the political coalition that Carlos Menem assembled, and how the currency board undermined the stability of the coalition.
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Comparative Politics

The profound political and economic transformations taking place in Latin America since the early 1980s have revealed a great deal of variance across countries. Despite common trends, the timing, modality, and consequences of the changes differed considerably. Studies addressing various aspects of these transformations from a comparative perspective have proliferated. Those comparing Argentina to other Southern Cone or Latin American countries abound. A good number of them focus on the problems and challenges arising from the transition to democracy. Cavarozzi 1992, for instance, discusses how historical patterns of negotiation among elites in Argentina and Chile affected democratic transitions. O’Donnell 1994 made a key theoretical contribution to the understanding of the nature of democratic regimes emerging from these transitions by comparing the main traits of representative democracies in advanced countries to the delegative, unconsolidated democracies of Latin America. Acuña, et al. 1994 addresses the new role of the military in political transitions within the Southern Cone. Civil-military relations is also the analytical focus of Hunter 1997 and Hunter 1998, which extend the comparison to Chile and Peru, and of Carranza 1997, which elaborates on how the transformation of the state in Argentina and Brazil parallels the changes in the political regime. The implications for the quality of democracy in both countries of an increasing protagonism of civil society in general, and nongovernmental organizations in particular, is the subject of Friedman and Hochstetler 2002. Petras 2005 can be seen as complementary to this study inasmuch as it presents a detailed account of the conflict represented by incipient social movements and how the state responds to them. Its comparison involves both the Southern Cone and the Andean region, including Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, and Ecuador.

Acuña, Carlos H., Carlos H. Acuña, William C. Smith, and Leandro Wolfson. “Política y ‘economía militar’ en el Cono Sur: Democracia, producción de armamentos y carrera armentista en la Argentina, Brasil y Chile.” Desarrollo Económico 34.135 (1994): 343–378.
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This essay examines the consolidation of a new pattern of civil-military relations in the postauthoritarian Southern Cone. The authors conclude by arguing that in spite of democratic consolidation, the most probable future scenario is a resurgence of militarization. Title translation: Politics and military economy in the Southern Cone: Democracy, weapons production, and the arms race in Argentina, Brazil, and Chile.
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Carranza, Mario E. “Transitions to Electoral Regimes and the Future of Civil-Military Relations in Argentina and Brazil.” Latin American Perspectives 24.5 (1997): 7–25.
DOI: 10.1177/0094582X9702400502Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
In this article, the author argues that the democratization processes in Argentina and Brazil are characterized by continuity in the form of state and a transformation in the form of regime and that a new internationalized state is emerging in both countries.
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Cavarozzi, Marcelo. “Patterns of Elite Negotiation and Confrontation in Argentina and Chile.” In Elites and Democratic Consolidation in Latin America and Southern Europe. Edited by John Higley and Richard Gunther, 208–236. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1992.
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This chapter examines the legacies of preauthoritarian pasts in Argentina and Chile, the way that those legacies have contributed to shape each country’s transition to democracy, the patterns of elite behavior during the transitions, and the likelihood that political democracy will be consolidated.
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Friedman, Elisabeth J., and Kathryn Hochstetler. “Assessing the Third Transition in Latin American Democratization: Representational Regimes and Civil Society in Argentina and Brazil.” Comparative Politics 35.1 (2002): 21–42.
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A comparison of representational regimes in state-society relations in Argentina and Brazil shows a shift in civil society toward predominance of nongovernmental organizations, in addition to social movements. Despite this common characteristic, the different emerging representational regimes in these two countries carry different implications for the quality of democracy.
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Hunter, Wendy. “Continuity or Change? Civil-Military Relations in Democratic Argentina, Chile, and Peru.” Political Science Quarterly 112.3 (1997): 453–475.
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The author analyzes the balance of power and relationship between civilian politicians and the military in postmilitary civilian rule in Argentina, Chile, and Peru. She discusses the extent to which the new civilian governments have been able to suppress the military and the extent to which the military’s role remains prominent in political life.
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Hunter, Wendy. “Negotiating Civil-Military Relations in Post-Authoritarian Argentina and Chile.” International Studies Quarterly 42.2 (1998): 295–317.
DOI: 10.1111/1468-2478.00083Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This article invokes game theory to analyze civilian attempts to push back military influence in Argentina and Chile. It finds that civilian governments in both countries have managed to make progress in challenging military prerogatives. However, they have made relatively more progress in areas unrelated to human rights.
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O’Donnell, Guillermo A. “Delegative Democracy?” Journal of Democracy 5.1 (1994): 55–69.
DOI: 10.1353/jod.1994.0010Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
In this article, O’Donnell argues that existing theories and typologies of democracy refer to representative democracy as it exists in highly developed capitalist countries, and that some newly installed democracies are democracies, in the sense that they meet Robert Dahl’s criteria for the definition of polyarchy, yet are neither representative nor consolidated democracies.
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Petras, James F. Social Movements and State Power: Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, and Ecuador. London and Ann Arbor, MI: Pluto, 2005.
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The authors examine the political dynamics between the state and its agenda, and the strategy of mass mobilization taken by the mass movements. They explore the intensifying conflicts between the movements and their former allies in the state.
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Additional Works of Comparative Politics

Trinkunas 2000 overlaps with Hunter 1998 (cited under Comparative Politics) in the concern with the possibilities and limits of civilian control, though Trinkunas’s comparison centers on Argentina and Venezuela. Mani 2011 shows that military cooperation between Argentina and Chile was both a product and a shaper of the domestic processes of democratization. Roniger 1999 offers a comparative account of how the debate about human rights violations impacted various policy areas, from education to constitutional reform across Argentina, Uruguay, and Chile. Pereira 2005 grounds the differences in the approach to political repression and reparation on the legal systems and processes in Brazil, Chile, and Argentina. Levitsky 2003 explains the transformation of labor-based parties in Latin America, with an emphasis on the case of the late Peronism. Comparisons with Mexico are a few. Notable exceptions are Gibson 1997, on the crafting of electoral and governing coalitions, a process that was closely linked to making market-reforms viable; and Murillo 2001, which focuses on the role of unions and relations between political parties and labor unions during reform processes in Argentina, Mexico, and Brazil. In a similar line, the politics of a key reform—the centralization of fiscal power—is explored in Eaton and Dickovick 2004 for the cases of Argentina and Brazil in the 1990s.

Eaton, Kent, and J. Tyler Dickovick. “The Politics of Re-Centralization in Argentina and Brazil.” Latin American Research Review 39.1 (2004): 90–122.
DOI: 10.1353/lar.2004.0007Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This paper examines presidential efforts to recentralize fiscal power in the 1990s in Argentina and Brazil. In this study, the authors assess the role of economic crisis, the partisan powers of the president, the division of formal powers between the branches, and the extent of intrabureaucratic conflict.
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Gibson, Edward L. “The Populist Road to Market Reform: Policy and Electoral Coalitions in Mexico and Argentina.” World Politics 49.3 (1997): 339–370.
DOI: 10.1353/wp.1997.0011Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This work compares the importance of electoral and policymaking coalitions in Mexico and Argentina. This case study focuses on two important labor-based parties, the Peronist party in Argentina and the Partido Revolucionario Institucional in Mexico. It analyzes how these parties maintained electoral dominance while pursuing free-market reforms that negatively affected key constituencies.
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Levitsky, Steven. Transforming Labor-based Parties in Latin America: Argentine Peronism in Comparative Perspective. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511615641Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This book explains why Argentina’s Peronist Justicialista Party adapted successfully to the challenges of neoliberalism and working-class decline. The book shows how the party’s fluid internal structure allowed it to adapt and transform itself from a union-dominated populist party into a vehicle for carrying out radical market-oriented economic reforms.
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Mani, Kristina. Democratization and Military Transformation in Argentina and Chile: Rethinking Rivalry. Boulder, CO: First Forum, 2011.
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This book examines the dynamic connection between democracy building and security cooperation in Argentina and Chile in the 1990s. This analysis reveals how the international relations of democratizing states are both the product of domestic political goals and a potentially powerful shaper of domestic politics.
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Murillo, Maria Victoria. Labor Unions, Partisan Coalitions, and Market Reforms in Latin America. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2001.
DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511612657Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This book examines the role of national confederations and individual unions in Argentina, Mexico, and Brazil. It demonstrates the significance of the presence and nature of alliances between political parties and labor unions and the importance of competition between labor unions for the representation of the same kinds of workers.
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Pereira, Anthony W. Political (In)justice: Authoritarianism and the Rule of Law in Brazil, Chile, and Argentina. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2005.
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This book compares the legal aspects of political repression in Brazil, Chile, and Argentina. By focusing on political trials as a reflection of each regime’s overall approach to the law, Pereira argues that the practice of each regime can be explained by examining the prior relationship between the judiciary and the military.
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Roniger, Luis. The Legacy of Human Rights Violations in the Southern Cone: Argentina, Chile and Uruguay. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198296157.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This book analyzes the struggles, debates, and institutional paths and crises that took place in the Southern Cone following redemocratization in the 1980s and the 1990s. It examines the attempt to reshape the domain of human rights in areas such as public accountability, expiation and compensation, educational policy and constitutional reform, and policies of reconciliation.
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Trinkunas, Harold A. “Crafting Civilian Control in Emerging Democracies: Argentina and Venezuela.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 42.3 (2000): 77–109.
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This article develops a theoretical argument about how civilian control is established. Venezuela institutionalized weak civilian control in the wake of its 1958 democratic transition, allowing the regime to survive the 1992 coup attempts. Argentina moved close to strong civilian control by 1995, although such control was exercised through questionable institutional channels.
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Comparative Policies

The study of the interplay of politics and economics in the adoption and implementation of neoliberal reforms has given place to an extensive literature. Again, comparative approaches have helped to clarify the specificities of each case and the general lessons. Some studies focus on concrete policies or actors. Such is the case of Lloyd-Sherlock 2002, which critically examines the health-care system in Argentina and Mexico in relation to the broader question of social inclusion, and Murillo 1999, which explores the union-government relationship during the decentralization of educational systems in the same two countries. Mexico and Argentina are also the case studies in Patroni 2001, a work on the entire reform of labor legislation and its implications for corporatism, and Shefner, et al. 2006, an analysis of protests against austerity measures—both centered on processes mainly undergoing in the 1990s. Another set of studies aims at unveiling the factors that facilitated or impaired the implementation of market-oriented reforms. Corrales 2002 provides a nuanced view of one of these factors: crises in the relationship between the executive power and the ruling party in Venezuela and Argentina in the 1990s. Blake 1998 focuses on public opinion trends in Uruguay and Argentina. Manzetti 2009 compares Chile and Argentina to Eastern European countries to assess the impact of weak accountability standards, corruption, and patronage on the failure of neoliberal policies to generate sustained growth. From a broader perspective, Grimson and Kessler 2005 discusses how global forces have contributed to integrate societies and economies and shaped policy approaches within the Southern Cone.

Blake, Charles H. “Economic Reform and Democratization in Argentina and Uruguay: The Tortoise and the Hare Revisited?” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 40.3 (1998): 1–26.
DOI: 10.2307/166198Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
This study examines attitudes toward democracy and the market using a comparison of Argentina and Uruguay. This comparison is done by looking at the transition to the democracy that formed the backdrop of recent economic reform efforts. The article also examines the respective processes of economic reform in the Menem and Lacalle administrations and finally compares public opinion data on democracy in both countries.
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Corrales, Javier. Presidents without Parties: The Politics of Economic Reform in Argentina and Venezuela in the 1990s. University Park: Pennsylvania State University, 2002.
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This book emphasizes the critical role of political parties in dealing with governability problems during critical junctures. Based on the cases of Argentina and Venezuela, Corrales shows how the relationship between the executive and the governing party contributed to different outcomes, that is, to a relative success in the implementation of neoliberal reforms in Argentina and failure in Venezuela.
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Grimson, Alejandro, and Gabriel Kessler. On Argentina and the Southern Cone: Neoliberalism and National Imaginations. New York: Routledge, 2005.
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This book analyzes both how Argentina sought to insert itself in regional and global processes and how global ideas and policies were appropriated and applied in Argentina and in the Southern Cone in general.
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Lloyd-Sherlock, Peter. “Health, Equity and Social Exclusion in Argentina and Mexico.” In Exclusions and Engagement: Social Policy in Latin America. Edited by Christopher Abel and Colin M. Lewis, 172–187. London: University of London, Institute of Latin American Studies, 2002.
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Lloyd-Sherlock compares social policy in Argentina and Mexico by looking at health care, socioeconomic inequality, and policies of social inclusion/exclusion in both countries. The author analyzes recent reform experiences and finds little evidence that these issues are being effectively addressed.
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Manzetti, Luigi. Neoliberalism, Accountability, and Reform Failures in Emerging Markets: Eastern Europe, Russia, Argentina, and Chile in Comparative Perspective. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2009.
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This book is an analysis of the failure of neoliberal market reforms in producing sustained growth in emerging markets. It focuses on problems with weak-accountability institutions and the collusion between government and business, political patronage, and corruption.
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Murillo, Maria V. “Recovering Political Dynamics: Teachers’ Unions and the Decentralization of Education in Argentina and Mexico.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 41.1 (1999): 31–57.
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This article compares union-government relations in Mexico and Argentina when education was decentralized in the early 1990s. These cases illustrate the significance of partisan identities, union fragmentation, and leadership competition in the interaction of public-sector unions and government officials.
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Patroni, Viviana. “The Decline and Fall of Corporatism? Labor Legislation Reform in Mexico and Argentina during the 1990s.” Canadian Journal of Political Science 34.2 (2001): 249–274.
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This article explores the debate that surrounded proposed changes to labor legislation in Mexico and Argentina during the 1990s. The objective is to demonstrate an important instance of continuity with previous forms of political control: the maintenance of corporatism as a key characteristic in the relationship between the parties responsible for the transformation and the organized labor movements in these countries.
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Shefner, Jon, George Pasdirtz, and Cory Blad. “Austerity Protests and Immiserating Growth in Mexico & Argentina.” In Latin American Social Movements: Globalization, Democratization, and Transnational Networks. Edited by Hank Johnson and Paul Almeida, 19–42. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2006.
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This chapter compares austerity protests and their political outcomes in Mexico and Argentina during the 1990s. It argues that some of the contributions of political opportunity theory may be expanded if one looks at how hardships influence the political and cultural landscape of nations experiencing international pressure.