ABSTRACT
Populism is a recurrent feature of Latin America’s political experience. In the Andes, a subregion that includes Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela, it seems to be a particularly ingrained form of political representation. While populism may indeed find fertile ground in the Andes, it competes with the efforts and desires of many who want to establish democratic forms of governance in the region. It would be excessive optimism to state that populism is in decline whereas democracy is on the rise in the Andes, for populism continues to exert a persistent attraction, but recent events seem to suggest that its heyday may have been reached. In this chapter I discuss the resurgence of populism and chronicle its success in changing the rules of the political game. At the same time, I discuss the surprising resilience of democracy in post-Fujimori Peru and Colombia, countries that have successfully transitioned from authoritarianism (in Peru) and political violence (both in Colombia and Peru).
