Nancy Bermeo

Democracy and the Lessons of Dictatorship

I must acknowledge . .. that I would have been wiser had I been more moderate in my criticism of the Giolittian system. For while we Italian crusaders attacked him from the Left, accusing him of being-as he was-a corrupter of Italian democracy in the making, others assailed him from the Right because he was even too democratic for their taste. Our criticism thus did not help to direct the evolution of Italian public life toward less imperfect forms of democracy but rather toward the victory of ... reactionary groups .... As for the results of the Fascist dictatorship in contrast with those of Italian democracy in the making, they are here before our very eyes. Let us hope that the Italians will not be the only ones to learn from that frightful experience.1

THE IMPORT OF INSTITUTIONS

A new research project suggests that federalism enhances the ability of regimes to accommodate territorially based minorities.Federal systems,except when imposed by an outside power,significantly help to preserve the peace.

Sacrifice, Sequence, and Strength in Successful Dual Transitions: Lessons from Spain

This article presents a model for successful dual transitions derived from an analysis of the Spanish experience of 1977-1986. I argue that the successful implementation of structural adjustment programs depends on two factors: one, a reform sequence that delays deepened structural adjustment until after the consolidation of democracy seems assured, and two, a strong ruling party. In the Spanish case and in other successful dual transitions discussed here, the party that won the first democratic elections concentrated on consolidating democracy while the party that won the second national elections concentrated on economic reforms.

On Democratic Backsliding

Democratic backsliding (meaning the state-led debilitation or elimination of the political institutions sustaining an existing democracy) has changed dramatically since the Cold War. Open-ended coups d’état, executive coups, and blatant election-day vote fraud are declining while promissory coups, executive aggrandizement and strategic electoral manipulation and harassment are increasing. Contemporary forms of backsliding are especially vexing because they are legitimated by the very institutions democracy promoters prioritize but, overall, backsliding today reflects democracy’s advance and not its retreat. The current mix of backsliding is more easily reversible than the past mix and successor dictatorships are shorter-lived and less authoritarian.

Interests, Inequality, and Illusion in the Choice for Fair Elections

Why do actors in transitional governments choose to hold fair elections when so many other options are available? The answer to this question is key to understanding an essential element of democracy’s institutional collage. This essay explores the choice of fair elections through the comparison of two episodes in Portuguese history: the elections held at the founding of the First Republic (which were unfair) and the elections held after the fall of the Salazar—Caetano dictatorship (which were fair instead). The findings challenge arguments strictly based on the socioeconomic and class-based determinants of democratization: Although collective actors pursued outcomes on the basis of the expected distributional consequences of their choices, the author shows that cross-class political actors were more important than class actors and that the distribution of institutional power was more important than the distribution of wealth. The author also shows that illusions and misperceptions were highly consequential for important institutional choices. If scholars seek to explain democratization on the basis of structural realities alone, they risk overrating the power of wealth and underrating the power of the imagined.

Does Electoral Democracy Boost Economic Equality

Abstract:Inequalities seem ubiquitous, despite the spread of electoral democracy and what were, until recently, positive rates of economic growth. These seemingly mismatched trends should not surprise us. The advance of democracy entails a decrease in political inequality but does not guarantee decreases in inequalities of other sorts. Economic (and other) inequalities have historically followed their own dynamic, independent of whether electoral democracy exists. The same generalization holds for electoral democracy and poverty. Collective action challenges mean that rising economic inequalities will not be easily reversed. This may harm the quality of contemporary democracies, but is unlikely to cause massive collapse.

War and Democratization: Lessons from the Portuguese Experience

The literature on democracy suggests that new democracies should have difficulty emerging during war or in the aftermath of armed struggle, yet Portugals current democracy emerged simultaneously with the end of the nations unsuccessful war in Africa. This article addresses the reasons and argues that democracy triumphed not simply in spite of the war but also, in part, because of it. The costs and geography of the war itself, the capacity and rootedness of the state that waged the war, the political culture of the regimes military officers, and the war-related timing of Portugals first elections all helped prevent the emergence of an anti-democratic coalition and contributed to ensuring a successful transition to democracy. The article ends with three ideas that merit closer examination: that different sorts of wars leave different legacies for democracy; that wars that leave state bureaucracies intact or stronger are more likely to be followed by lasting democracy than those which do not; and, finally, that the ideologies of military elites are pivotal to the outcome of post-war democratic transitions.

Ministerial Elites in Southern Europe: Continuities, Changes and Comparisons

Ministerial elites in Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal have changed dramatically since these states began their slow march to democracy in the 19th century. Though changes have not homogenized the ministerial elites of Europes South, each country has responded to the pressures of modernization, democratization and Europeanization with an increased role for the technically trained in government. Italys response to these pressures stands out as unique, but each of the other states has managed to combine a decrease in the role of pure politicians with high rates of public satisfaction with democracy.

Contention and Democracy in Europe, 1650–2000

Contention and Democracy in Europe, 1650–2000. By Charles Tilly. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004. 320p.

Myths of Moderation: Confrontation and Conflict during Democratic Transitions

60.00 cloth,