Violent crime and the expansion of executive power in Latin America

Abstract

What is the relationship between violent crime and the expansion of executive power? Whereas the literature on crises and executive power has focused on the centralization of authority resulting from the war on terror, the role played by other forms of crises short of interstate war has been neglected, especially in the developing world. This article argues that public safety crises have enabled executives to expand their power at the expense of other branches of government, levels of government, and protections against government abuse. It does so with examples from Latin America, where violent crime has become an important concern in many countries, highlighting the adoption of states of exception and the militarization of public life as avenues for the expansion of presidential power. It also provides in‐depth, longitudinal evidence from the Mexican case to show the adoption of these measures over time and their consequences for democracy.