Economic values and party preference in Mexico, Argentina, and the United States.

The article answers questions like are views on the economy likely to affect political preferences. During the late 1980s and the early 1990s many Latin American countries underwent radical economic reform programmes in a neo-liberal direction. In that context, the answers to the questions seem to be of particular interest. In Latin America, the recent introduction of market oriented policies received wide-spread support, especially in those countries where they were preceded by high levels of inflation, such as in the cases of Bolivia, Argentina, and Peru. At first, some of these programmes were very successful. In several countries, the economy started growing again after a period of recession, productivity was increased, the budget deficit was reduced, and recently privatised companies began offering better services. The article considers three surveys conducted by the World Study Group between 1995 and 1997. National random and quota sampling were used. In Argentina 1,079 urban dwellers were interviewed. In Mexico the survey included 1,511 respondents, and the fieldwork was carried out in 1996 and 1997.