Redistributive Preferences in a Center-Periphery Perspective: The Case of Latin America

Despite high socio-economic and territorial disparities, Latin America shows little polarization in redistributive demands between the richest and the poorest. This study relies on a center-periphery approach to explore the role of geography in shaping citizens' redistribution preferences in the Latin American region, using nationally representative LAPOP opinion survey data from 16 countries between 2012 and 2018. A classification of respondents' cities is carried out to identify metropolises and peripheral areas, as well as their level of development using remote sensing data. Findings reveal stronger demands for redistribution among citizens living outside metropolises, and particularly those living in small cities and villages. These demands do not primarily stem from the poorest citizens, but rather from those who can be considered part of the consumer or middle class. The analysis also shows that while there has been a decline in strong redistributive demand since 2012, the gap between the center and periphery has tended to narrow since 2016, but with heterogeneous country-specific results. This decline is mainly driven by small cities and villages and the least affluent citizens, converging with those of metropolises.