The trajectory of vice-presidents in the presidential regimes of the Americas

Authors

  • Pablo Mieres
  • Ernesto Pampín

Keywords:

Vicepresidents, Presidentialism, America, Political careers

Abstract

The following article analyzes the career of the 110 individuals who served as vice president in the 17 presidential regimes of the American continent in the period spanning from 1985 to 2012. First, the article analyses the variables which influence the selection of succesful vicepresidential candidates, and seeks to elucidate if presidential tickets seeks to increase their political and socio-demographic representation with said candidate. The article also studies the relationship between presidents and their respective vicepresidents, and suggests that the key variables which explain this relationship are the vicepresident’s preexisting loyalty towards his running mate, the president’s job performance and the vicepresident’s own political power. Finally, the paper proposes that the vicepresidency can not be perceived as a stepping stone towards the presidency, as very few sitting or former vice presidents are ever elected to the highest office.

Issue

Section

ARTICLES