A CHALLENGE FOR DEMOCRACY Political Parties in Central America, Panama and the Dominican Republic Diego Achard - Luis E. González With the collaboration of Edelberto Torres-Rivas Ricardo Córdova Macías Kevin Casas Daniel Zovatto Published by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), the Organization of American States (OAS) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) 2005 © Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) 1300 New York Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20577 © International IDEA © Organization of American States (OAS) © United Nations Development Program (UNDP) First Edition (in Spanish), May 2004 This publication can be requested from: IDB Bookstore 1300 New York Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20577 United States of America Tel. (202) 623-1753, Fax (202) 623-1709 1-877-782-7432
[email protected] www.iadb.org/pub The opinions expressed in this book are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Inter-American Development Bank, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, the United Nations Development Program or the Organization of American States. ISBN: Printed by Compañía ABC Ediciones del Sur S.A. San José, Costa Rica, August 2005 2 A challenge for democracy Contents Introduction . 5 I. Bringing All Voices Together: The state of and prospects for political parties in Central America, Panama and the Dominican Republic Diego Achard and Luis E. González . 9 Foreword . 11 Executive summary . 13 Chapter 1 Introduction: Central American Political Parties . 19 Chapter 2. Party systems in the region . 27 Chapter 3. Institutional self-portraits . 45 Chapter 4.