International Forum for Democratic Studies Interview Series
Democracy Ideas: Javier Corrales with the International Forum for Democratic Studies
About this Episode
In an interview filmed shortly before the Venezuelan government began a violent crackdown against peaceful opposition protesters on February 12, 2014, Christopher Walker met with Forum Research Council Member Javier Corrales to discuss signs of increasing authoritarianism in Venezuela under the leadership of President Nicolás Maduro. In this interview, Dr. Corrales outlines the mechanisms that Maduro uses to maintain loyalty in the ruling coalition and repress the opposition. In addition, Dr. Corrales explains how Venezuela has sought to exert influence in Latin America and why it seeks to build relationships with other authoritarian regimes around the world, first under the leadership of Hugo Chávez and now under Maduro.
Dr. Javier Corrales is professor of political science at Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts. He obtained his Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University. He is the co-author (with Carlos A. Romero) of U.S.-Venezuela Relations since the 1990s: Coping with Midlevel Security Threats (Routledge, 2013) and (with Michael Penfold) of Dragon in the Tropics: Hugo Chávez and the Political Economy of Revolution in Venezuela (Brookings Institution Press, 2011). He is also working on a book manuscript on constitutional reforms in Latin America.
Related Content
Download “Latin America’s Authoritarian Drift: The Threat from the Populist Left” [PDF] and listen to the Journal of Democracy podcast with author Kurt Weyland, from the July 2013 issue.
Watch video from the Forum’s discussion of “Latin America’s Changing Political Landscape” in February 2011 featuring Javier Corrales, based on a cluster of articles published in the January 2011 issue of the Journal of Democracy.
Read Javier Corrales’ analyses on “Latin America: A Setback for Chavez” and “Venezuela: Crowding out the Opposition,” published in the Journal of Democracy. (ProjectMUSE subscription is required to access these articles.)
