South America Archives - Page 2 of 4

February 14, 2022 Catherine Anderson

Honduras Swears in First Female President

After losing elections in 2013 and 2017, Xiomara Castro has officially been inaugurated as Honduras’s first female president, reports CNN. Castro first rose to political prominence in 2009, when she led a march through the nation’s capital demanding that her husband, former President Manuel Zelaya, be reinstated as president following a military coup. Castro, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist brings an end to 12 years of right-wing leadership, BBC News adds. At her inauguration, she emphasized that she seeks to “refound” the nation on “citizen values, ”The New York Times reports.

2021 November 2021 International News Americas

November 24, 2021 Austin Delsontro

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega Re-Elected in Denounced Election

Early results from the Nicaraguan general election on November 7 indicate that incumbent President Daniel Ortega has won by a landslide, BBC News reports. The result was unsurprising to many onlookers across the globe, as President Ortega secured nearly 76 percent of the vote, winning his fourth consecutive term in office.

November 2021 Focus Global Pariahs Americas

November 24, 2021 Madeline Field

FOCUS on Pariah Leaders: Nicolás Maduro

Nicolás Maduro, the simultaneously reviled and celebrated socialist President of Venezuela, is facing another contested vote in November’s upcoming regional elections, according to CNN. The rise and fall of Maduro’s political legitimacy parallel that of other populist leaders in Latin America, but recent events indicate that Maduro may finally achieve the legitimacy he desires.

October 2021 International News Americas

October 27, 2021 Sara Attia

Chile to Reinstate State of Emergency Midst of Mapuche Attacks

On September 27, the citizens of Chile believed that their way of life would soon return to normal when their government officials lifted the state of emergency that was imposed during the pandemic, according to Reuters. However, France24 explains that the state of emergency was reinstated after less than two weeks.

2021 April 2021 International News Americas

April 27, 2021 Shweta Parthasarathy

Conservative Banker Wins Ecuadorian Election

Voters in Ecuador elected Guillermo Lasso, a conservative banker, to serve as president for the next four years. Lasso won the runoff election with just 52.5 percent of the votes, reports The Economist, after claiming a spot in the runoff with a lead of a half a percentage point.

November 2020 Opinion 2020

November 17, 2020 Melissa Myrtaj

Politicization of a Pandemic Costs Lives

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and Governor of São Paulo João Doria clashed over the implementation of a mandatory coronavirus vaccination of the São Paulo region. Joao Doria is in favor of making CoronaVac, a COVID-19 immunization, mandatory alongside other non-coronavirus vaccines as Brazil requires. Sinovac is a China-based biopharmaceutical company developing the CoronaVac and would conduct phase three trials on the São Paulo citizens, which is favored by Governor Doria, according to the South China Morning Post.

October 2020 Opinion 2020

October 21, 2020 Jason Grieco

Jair Bolsonaro is a Fascist and We Should All Be Concerned

Merriam Webster defines fascism as “a political philosophy, movement, or regime that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition.” It is clear that by this definition, Jair Bolsonaro is a fascist

October 2019 Opinion 2019

January 15, 2020 Daniela Maquera Sardon

Anti-corruption Crusade Makes Peru’s Crisis Worthwhile

On September 30, the Congress of Peru was dissolved. This decision comes after a long-standing year of Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra laying out proposals to clean up political and judicial institutions against rampant corruption among the country’s elites.