Authoritarian legacies and far-right normalization : Peru in comparative perspective

The far right has accumulated significant power in Latin American countries and even won presidential elections or obtained parliamentary majorities. More importantly, their ideas have become relevant within institutions, mainstream media, and episodes of social mobilization. They have been normalized within the political arena. Although this could be framed as part of a global trend, the existence of variation in the region gives us the opportunity to explore endogenous conditions. Although the cultural and political influence of electoral dynamics in developed democracies cannot be denied, the variation shows us that there are conditions that make some countries more susceptible to importing these platforms and rhetoric than others. Understanding this variation is crucial to assess the conditions and processes that explain the rise of far-right influence. I understand far right normalization as an increase in the discursive and coalitional influence of radical and extreme groups from the right in political processes. This process can be measured by considering 1) the reshaping of the public debate based on the issues and frames propagated by these groups, and 2) the political weight they obtain in the formation of electoral alliances or government/opposition coalitions. Why the normalization of the far right is greater in some countries than in others? I argue that different levels of normalization correspond to different historical legacies; more specifically, my thesis is that the existence of authoritarian legacies following intense processes of political violence explain a greater tendency towards the normalization of the far right. These legacies provide the organizational and ideational resources necessary to ensure coalitional relevance and discursive influence, respectively.