Reports
Discussion Papers
No.1006 Patterns of Executive Removal and Its Consequences in Democratic Backsliding Countries in Asia and Latin America
by Aya Watanabe, Kana Inata, Marisa Kellam
March 2026
ABSTRACT
This study investigates how democratic backsliders in third wave democracies exit office and how their removal shapes subsequent democratic trajectories. Using an original dataset that classifies different types of executive exit in Asia and Latin America, we show that specific exit types are related to differing degrees of democratic backsliding. To explain why some democracies recover after backsliders leave office while others stagnate, we compare Ecuador under Rafael Correa and Indonesia under Joko Widodo. Despite more severe backsliding in Ecuador, democracy rebounded, whereas Indonesia’s recovery remains limited. We argue that elite fragmentation facilitates reversal of backsliding, while elite collusion entrenches weakened democratic institutions and constrains prospects for democratic restoration.
Keywords: democratic backsliding, executive removal, elite fragmentation/collusion, Asia, Latin America
PDF available at https://hdl.handle.net/2344/0002001831
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