Electoral manipulation and postelectoral protests in Latin America

Abstract

What is the relationship between electoral manipulation andpostelection protests in Latin America? The political scienceliterature has traditionally expected that election manipulationcan lead to postelection demonstrations, but the researchhas not dealt much with how the elections were manipulated.This study aims to fill this gap. An analysis of 221 elections inLatin America between 1980 and 2020 shows that the relationshipbetween electoral manipulation and postelectionprotests is far more complex than conventional explanationssuggest. The results show that pre-election manipulation doesnot increase the likelihood of postelection protests. Regardingmanipulation during elections, it appears that citizens ofLatin American countries are susceptible to administrativefraud. Contrary to previous studies, intimidation and votebuying also have no effect.