New Left Review I/194, July-August 1992

Ana Cristina Laurell

Democracy in Mexico: Will the First Be the Last?

Against the trend of democratization that is establishing itself in Latin America, complete with the accompanying debacle of its various state-party regimes, Mexico alone continues to postpone the transition to a legitimate and representative polity. The party dictatorship described as ‘perfect’ by Mario Vargas Llosa, the former candidate of the Right for the Peruvian presidency, is still in power. It is no coincidence that one of the few Latin American countries to have escaped the scourge of coups d’état and military governments is one of the last to concede the minimum democratic right of citizens to elect their rulers.

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