A Constitution I Am Used To? Constitutional Endurance and Replacement in Democratic Latin America

Abstract

It is well known that during times of social unrest, replacing the constitution is one of the first proposals to emerge, at least in Latin America, as if this constitutional shift could resolve any problem. Constitutional substitution is not a new phenomenon in Latin America; it actually began after the region’s redemocratization. However, it is striking that, despite similar conditions of social unrest, many other countries in the region have not undergone such an encompassing constitutional reform. Our main focus here is to analyze the persistence of constitutions in Latin American countries. We thus ask: What conditions lead democratic countries to keep their constitutions? Using a configurational approach, our preliminary results are promising. Together, four pathways explain why some countries have not replaced their constitutions in democratic contexts, with special emphasis on the number of rights enshrined in these fundamental laws.