UNDERSTANDING VOTER TURNOUT IN LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES: AN INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL ANALYSIS.

In this paper is to explore the determinants of individual-level voter turnout among the mass public in Latin American countries. We develop a model in which we depict voter turnout as a function of independent variables representing several theoretical clusters, including economic variables, the informational environment, attitudes toward democracy, ideology, contextual variables, and demographic attributes. We test hypothesis about the effects of these variables using data from the 2009 Latino Barometer. We find substantial evidence of the effects of compulsory voting on voter turnout, particularly when compulsory voting is accompanied by sanctions and strong enforcement. Further, we also find that variables reflecting attitudes toward democracy and the informational environment have particularly strong effects on voter turnout, and there are some economic and demographic variables that influence turnout as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]