Who Discredits the Elections? Ideology, Experience and Competitiveness

• In Event: Voting and Elections in the Global South

Abstract

Why do Latin American politicians resort to disinformation to discredit elections? The recent Latin American electoral cycle has shown a trend towards discrediting elections as a political strategy. The constant attacks against electoral processes, electoral agencies and electoral courts have taken advantage of polarization and citizen fears, creating a negative impact on the confidence of Latin Americans regarding the political system as a whole. Where do these attacks on electoral institutions come from? Recent literature has placed emphasis on the populism, radicalism and amateurism to explain politicians’ attacks against elections and electoral institutions. Using an original dataset that collects presidential candidates' interventions on Twitter, I introduce a multi-method approach to test those theories focusing on recent electoral processes in the Andean sub-region.

Author

• Paolo Sosa-Villagarcia, The University of British Columbia