Presidential democracies and regional integration : an institutional approach to Mercosur (1985-2000)

Abstract

Regional integration has become a need for national states to face the challenges of globalization. However, the ongoing integration processes are not alike, and neither are their outcomes. This research outlines the political differences concerning a few of them, particularly the two blocs that have reached the customs union stage: the European Union and Mercosur. Whereas the former features a pattern of increasing institutionalization at a regional, often supranational level, the latter does not progress along the same path but through intergovernmental mechanisms, in a more politicized -as opposed to institutionalized— shape. This research tackles two main puzzles. The first is the success of Mercosur in a region where previous attempts at integration had systematically failed. The second is the unexpected characteristics of Mercosur operation, which challenge both established theories and the archetypal model of the European Union. The main hypothesis suggests that Mercosur success-without-regional-institutions can be partially explained by the domestic institutional settings o f its member countries. Executive format is thus addressed in order to appraise whether presidential democracies have been able to back up an integration process in a previously unsuspected way. Through the empirical analysis of seven regional processes that took place between 1985 and 2000, this research looks into the extent to which national instead of regional institutions provided for decision-making, dispute settlement and rule enforcement. The conclusion arrived at is that, in the absence of regional institutions, a specific combination of national institutions with presidential diplomacy has supplied effective bases for regional integration.