Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book looks at an analysis of the failure of the political reforms of 1989. The analysis takes issue with the tendency to view as fundamentally 'democratic', administrations that meet the minimum procedural requirements of a liberal democracy. The book seeks to demonstrate flaws in the classification of 'democratic' regimes within political science. It analyses the abstention phenomena in Venezuela. Venezuela was traditionally viewed as bedrock of democratic stability in a region otherwise cursed by military intervention and political underdevelopment. A range of factors was used to support the position that Venezuelan democracy was permanent and consolidated. The book discusses the impact of the 1989 reforms, evaluating the impact that the decentralisation initiative had on the party system and the limitations imposed on the full realisation of the intended reforms.