Chile’s neoliberal economic model survived the transition to democracy despite electoral defeat
Evidence
In October 1988 Pinochet lost the plebiscite, which had been required by the constitution. A union of the center-left parties—the Concertación—won the first elections that took place a year later. The regime’s candidate, Hernán Büchi, was defeated by Patricio Aylwin, a Christian Democrat. The members of the neoliberal team were now barred from high positions in government. Despite the new coalition government and the postdictatorship opportunities, practically all observers concur that the neoliberal model of economic policy by and large remained in place. Why was this the case? — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 1606
Categorization
- QUESTION: What specific mechanisms — constitutional lock-ins, business power, or consensus — best explain this continuity?
- XREF: connects to: Chilean governments preserved Pinochet’s austerity model after the dictatorship fell — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order: How Economists…, 1739; Neoliberalism in Chile outlasted dictatorship by adapting to democracy — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin: The Making…, 1614; Chilean neoliberals founded think tanks to preserve their influence after losing power — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin: The Making…, 1610 (+3 more)
Broader Connections
- Neoliberalism in Chile outlasted dictatorship by adapting to democracy
#corroborates(1.00) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 1614 - Chilean neoliberals founded think tanks to preserve their influence after losing power
#expands(0.80) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 1610 - Neoliberal reforms can proceed without an authoritarian political system
#expands(0.75) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 1542 - Neoliberalism survives crises through deliberate policy adaptability, not fixed doctrine.
#expands(0.70) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 206