Variation of Executive Instability in Presidential Regimes: Three Types of Presidential Interruption

Abstract

This paper argues that presidential interruptions in Latin America mainly fall into one of three types based on the motivation behind presidential challenges: Presidential scandals, presidential violations of democratic principles, and popular discontentment with a president’s policies. The types of interruptions affect which actors are most likely to dominate the challenge to the president, and the outcomes and aftermaths of presidential interruptions. By differentiating between different types of interruptions in Latin America, the paper provides a new and nuanced contribution to two ongoing debates in the field: Whether presidential interruptions institutionally or street-driven; and whether presidential interruptions are positive or negative for presidential democracy.