The renewal of traditional conservatism through new parties.
The case of Centro Democrático in Colombia, 2014-2018
Keywords:
right-wing, Centro Democrático, Colombia, traditional political parties, political identitiesAbstract
Since the early 1990s, a significant percentage of traditional political parties in Latin America have declined in political and electoral power (Wills-Otero, 2016). Conservative parties in different countries suffered a process of disaffection on the part of their electorate, following neoliberal reforms that, in many cases, worsened the living conditions of citizens. Voters and parties became disconnected. Colombia was no stranger to this problem. Traditional parties have declined electorally since the enactment of the 1991 constitution that opened the political arena. In recent years, a new right-wing party, the Centro Democrático (cd), under the leadership of former President Álvaro Uribe, has managed to win over important sectors of the electorate. What have been the determinants in this recent electoral success? Our analysis of municipal-level data from the last two national elections suggests that the cd has been able to appeal in a distinctive way to voters in the nation's municipalities where the traditional Conservative Party held sway for much of the twentieth century.
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