Support for democracy falls in Latin America and support for authoritarianism grows

Support for democracy in latin america fell in the last decade, while support for authoritarianism grows, especially among the youngest, revealed the latest Latinobarómetro survey released this Friday in Santiago.

“Democracy, far from being consolidated, has entered a recession” in Latin America, said sociologist Marta Lagos, director of the Latinobarómetro corporation, when presenting the results of the survey applied to 19,205 people in 17 countries in the region.

The study shows that only 48% of Latin Americans today support democracy as a political regime, which marks a decrease of 15 percentage points from 63% in 2010.

Support for authoritarianism is also rising. 17% of Latin Americans support the expression “an authoritarian government may be preferable” compared to 15% who did in 2010.

“Latin America It is a vulnerable region that is open to populism and undemocratic regimes, with a clear decline in democracies”, warns the report.

In 2023, the country with the greatest support for democracy is Uruguay, with 69%, followed by Argentina, with 62%; Chile, with 58%, and Venezuela, with 57%.

“Argentina is in a very good situation, much better than it appears in political opinion and the economic crisis. According to these data, no populist could be elected in Argentina”, says Marta Lagos.

This country will hold general elections on October 22.

On the contrary, the Dominican Republic is the country with the greatest support for authoritarianism, with 21%, followed by Peruwith 17%, and Costa Rica, with 16%.

With 20%, young people between the ages of 16 and 25 are the ones who show the most adherence to an authoritarian regime compared to 13% of people over 61, according to the Latinobarómetro.

Likewise, 43% of young people (between 16-25 years old) support democracy, while among those over 61 support reaches 55%.

The poll was conducted between February 20 and April 18 and has a 3% margin of error.

Source: AFP