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Civil Society and Political Elections: A Culture of Distrust?

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  • Andreas Schedler

    (Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales in Mexico City)

Abstract

After a long history of electoral fraud and especially after the fraudulent and conflictive presidential elections of 1988, Mexicans entered the 1990s with deep skepticism toward political elections. In the present decade, however, government and opposition parties have agreed to several profound electoral reforms that have succeeded in bringing fraud under control. How have Mexican citizens reacted to these institutional changes? Have they hibernated under the protective cover of an unchanging culture of distrust? Alternatively, have they adapted their expectations and perceptions of electoral fraud to the new democratic realities? The present article supports the hypothesis of change. Through analysis of data from various opinion polls, it arrives at an optimistic picture: trust in elections has steadily increased since 1988. Yet this optimism is diminished by a note of caution: more recent surveys indicate that distrust may be reemerging in the face of the critical presidential elections of the year 2000.

Suggested Citation

  • Andreas Schedler, 1999. "Civil Society and Political Elections: A Culture of Distrust?," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 565(1), pages 126-141, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:565:y:1999:i:1:p:126-141
    DOI: 10.1177/000271629956500108
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