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"The Consolidation of Polyarchy in Bolivia, 1985-1997." Presented at the annual meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, 15-17 April 1999. This paper measures the process of democratization in Bolivia from 1985 to 1998 using polyarchy as an operational definition of democracy. This quality of democracy is measured using a model developed by Altman and Pérez-Liñán (1998) which considers effective opposition and effective competition in a political system. Bolivia has elected four governments since 1985. This paper measures each regime for the quality of its democracy using the Altman and Pérez-Liñán variables. Bolivia’s political system is unique in that it rests on a semi-presidential, semi-parliamentary system while its constitution provides for institutionalized inter-party, postelectoral bargaining. The paper uses quantitative measurements of the quality of Bolivian democracy to discuss and explain the ongoing democratization process. Since 1985, Bolivian democracy has consolidated as it moved from a fragmented to a moderated political system. The political system is now stable and firmly planted while allowing flexibility along the party-coalition dimension. "Decentralization and Democratization in Bolivia." To be presented at the Latin American Studies Association International Congress, Miami, 16-18 March 2000. Bolivia’s decentralization under the 1994 Ley de Participación Popular (LPP) cannot be characterized as federalism or administrative decentralization. The Bolivian model demonstrates the importance of ideological discourse. The ideological and historical roots of Bolivia’s state devolution explain its divergence from other decentralization strategies. Bolivia’s LPP includes citizen-initiated Organizaciones Territoriales de Base (OTB) which provide communal democratic control over municipal governments. This unique strategy makes Bolivia a possible case for emulation among other decentralizing (and democratizing) regimes. "Polyarchy in Five South American States." Presented at the annual meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, 27-30 April 2000. This paper measures the degree of polyarchy in five South American states (Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela) since 1975 using a model developed by Altman and Pérez-Liñán (1998) and Centellas (1999). The model measures polyarchy in the electoral process along two axes: participation and competition. Our model follows Dahl’s basic premise that polyarchy requires high levels of both effective participation and political competition. Effective participation is a function of voter turnout, modified to account for null/blank votes and votes for parties not elected to the legislature. Effective competition is a function of the relative balance between government and opposition forces in the legislature. These measures should complement qualitative assessments of the progress of polyarchy in these five states and coincide with observed reality. "Parliamentarized Presidentialism: New Democracies, Constitutional Engineering, adn the Bolivian Model." Presented at the annual meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, Chicago, 19-22 April 2001. This paper analyzes the Bolivian model of executive-legislative relations within the context of formal and informal institutions. Since its transition to democracy, the Bolivian executive has been selected by the legislature, moving the officially presi-dential system closer to a parliamentary model. Reinforced by the electoral and party systems, the model is significantly different from the "hybrid presidential" model (which has separate heads of state and government) and contains its own internal logic. A better understanding of this institutional arrangement and its consequences for democratic consolidation sheds light not only on the role of institutional design in new democracies, but also calls into question some of the assumptions drawn from the traditional dichotomy between presidential and parliamentary systems.
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