Decentralization and Party Politics in the Dominican Republic [Hardcover]

Recently in the Dominican Republic, a pro-municipal social alliance pressed for decentralization and politicians yielded, seeking power in three-party competition. This study examines how electoral, financial, and administrative power has been dispersed and suggests innovative strategies to maintain decentralizing momentum.1. Introduction 2. Measures and Initiatives Favoring Decentralization, 1994-2008 3. The Deep Roots and Local Consequences of Dominican Centralism 4. A Decentralizing Coalition Finds Political Leverage 5. Party Alliances, the Municipios, and Decentralization 6. Dominican Decentralization Moves towards Maturity, 1996-2013 7. Pushback against Decentralization, and its Links with Influence over Nominations 8. Assessing Alternative Explanations of Dominican Decentralization 9. Pro-decentralization Strategies for the Future

This is the first systematic study of political decentralization in the Dominican Republic, a country known for its entrenched centralism. To understand the roots and characteristics of this transformation, Christopher Mitchell carefully examines each of the factors that contributed to promote municipalismo, from changes in the Constitution to increasing demands for better public services. Mitchell's detailed analysis of the formation of a decentralization coalition is a major contribution to the study of democratization in Latin America. Unlike other countries in the region, Dominican decentralization was not a by-product of neoliberal reforms; it proceeded in the context of a clientelistic state. - Rosario Espinal, Professor of Sociology, Temple University, USA

Chris Mitchell is skilfull in weaving a persuasive account of how a social movement and a party system combined to encourage an unlikely change - the decentralization of political power in the Dominican Republic. He provides an excellent example of scholarly insight into the politics of reform. - Merilee Grindle, Edward S. Mason Professor of Intlóè