Journal
POLITICAL STUDIES
Volume 70, Issue 1, Pages 173-194Publisher
SAGE PUBLICATIONS LTD
DOI: 10.1177/0032321720952230
Keywords
winner-loser gap; regime legitimacy; basic freedoms; liberal democracy; political context
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This research provides evidence from survey data in 18 Latin American countries that winners and losers respond differently to the quality of democracy. Winners express more favorable assessments of the supply of freedoms, while losers are more willing to acknowledge improvements or declines in the quality of democracy. The potential consequences of the winner-loser gap for regime stability are highly dependent on the democratic attributes of the political context.
Voters usually differ in their assessment of the regime's legitimacy, depending on their status as winners or losers. However, how wide or narrow the winner-loser gap is also depends on the quality of democratic institutions. Using survey data from 18 Latin American countries, this research provides evidence that winners and losers respond differently to the quality of democracy. While most research is concerned with the losers' consent, this study shows that the winners express more favorable assessments of the supply of freedoms, even in regimes where democracy is weak or undermined by the deliberate efforts of the political authorities. Instead, in their perception of freedoms, losers are more willing to acknowledge if the quality of democracy improves or declines. These results suggest that the potential consequences of the winner-loser gap for regime stability are highly dependent on the democratic attributes of the political context.
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