Abstract

OTERO FELIPE, Patricia  and  RODRIGUEZ ZEPEDA, Juan Antonio. Ideological Linkages and Electoral Success in Latin America. Polít. gob [online]. 2014, vol.21, n.1, pp.159-200. ISSN 1665-2037.

In this paper we explore the ability of Latin American political parties to build ideological linkages with the electorate and the extent to which those linkages are transformed into votes. We also find the party-level variables that predict the levels of ideological voting for the parties in the region. The results show that party age, radicalism and participation in government have a significant effect on the proportion of ideological voters that the parties' electorate. Moreover, the analysis illustrates that those parties that increase their amount of votes between elections also increase their number of ideological voters.

Keywords : ideological linkages; congruence; political parties; voters; Latin America.