Tales of the Fall and Rise of (In)Egalitarian Democracy: The Case of Argentina (1913-1999)

In general, the literature on democratization and inequality emphasizes that the adoption of a democratic regime brings voters who are below the national income average the incentive to vote for redistribution of income in their favor. However, it is worth mentioning that such an approach usually relies on events in developed countries. On average, these countries present particular models for moving through regimes of absolutist states and constitutional monarchies until, through popular pressure, they undergo a long and almost continuous process of democratization and an increase in the scope of the right to vote. This work analyzes the egalitarian aspect of democracy in the context of Argentina, given the political and institutional peculiarities of Latin America. The study's methodology follows a multi-method approach through quantitative (ARDL and Granger non-causality) and qualitative (congruence analysis) methods. The estimates indicate a long-term relationship between the democratization process in Argentina and the increase in income inequality. However, there is also an increase in the share of income distributed to workers. Qualitative historical work suggests that this relationship is due to the dispersion of wages related to economic shocks and redistribution of income to the middle class for electoral purposes.