Is democracy weakening across Latin America?

The latest report from The Economist Intelligence Unit shows a worsening of democracy across the region, thanks to unrest and political instability in many Latin American nations

democracy People crowds protesting at Santiago de Chile. Photo: AbriendoMundo/Shutterstock — People crowds protesting at Santiago de Chile. Photo: AbriendoMundo/Shutterstock

Jan 23, 2020 19:33 5 min read (Updated: May 11, 2021 14:10)

The year 2019 will go down in history as a setback for democracies around the globe. Social unrest, protests, and rising inequality have worsened the quality of political systems globally, as underlined by the latest figures from The Economist Intelligence Unit’s annual Democracy Index, which showed the lowest average worldwide score since its inception in 2006. The index stood at 5.44 worldwide (on a scale of 0 to 10), mainly “driven by sharp regressions in the average regional scores in Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa.”

Only three Latin American nations—Uruguay, Costa Rica, and Chile—were rated as “full democracies.” Meanwhile,...

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Is democracy weakening across Latin America?

The latest report from The Economist Intelligence Unit shows a worsening of democracy across the region, thanks to unrest and political instability in many Latin American nations

Access all of The Brazilian Report

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