Institutional Roots of Political Participation: Neoliberal Refroms and Political Participation in Mexico.

This paper examines the effect of neoliberal reforms on the political activity of the poor in Mexico by paying attention to how low-income actors experience these reforms and how they adapt their political behavior in response to these changes. While many analysts maintain that free-market and democratic reforms reinforce each other, this paper argues that neoliberal reforms and the new linkages they establish between the state and citizens stifle the voice of the poor and create new foundations for their powerlessness. They do this not through the threat of force or sanctions, but by making mobilization and demand making more difficult, or by channeling discontent into arenas such as local governments or neighborhood councils that have little decision making power. As a result, lower-class citizens channel their activities less and less into state-directed activities such as petitions and protests and more into informal and self-help modes that do not put pressure on state-actors. The net effect is to insulate policy makers from pressures from below, with significant negative consequences for representation, accountability and voice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]