Far-right politics is no longer just a European phenomenon. Instead, it has metastasised and spread to other continents. The far-right movement in Latin America has crafted its own design to ignite and amplify the voices of socially fractured groups. It also serves as a conduit for ‘othering’ people and disrupting social cohesion. This emerging trend is replacing left-wing leaders with authoritarian figures across the continent. Thus, far-right politics is putting liberal democracy on trial in Latin America.
In 2018, Brazil, the most populous country in Latin America, elected a far-right candidate, Jair Bolsonaro. His victory wrecked the country’s long-standing tradition of choosing left-wing leaders. He campaigned on solving the endemic violent crimes and assuaging public fear; his draconian measures to curb crimes shocked even many conservatives. Bolsonaro advocated, for instance, that police should neutralise gang members with impunity; accordingly, he was quoted as saying, “If he kills 10, 15, or 20 with 10 or 30 bullets each, he needs to get a medal and not be prosecuted.” The voters overwhelmingly approved of this autocratic idea, with 55.54% of the national vote. Moreover, Bolsonaro, as an ultra-conservative, openly made misogynistic and racist remarks; he disapproved of abortion and abhorred the politics of gender identities, upholding his religious values. As a proponent of a free-market economy, he stressed the privatisation of state-owned firms and the reduction of government spending. He disdained ‘political correctness’; his blunt, defiant, authoritarian attitude riveted voters. Therefore, a new political culture – far-rightism – attained an unprecedented acceptance after his victory in Brazil.
In 2019, Nayib Bukele was elected President of El Salvador with 53.1% of the vote. Since then, he has described himself as ‘the world’s coolest dictator.’ As the title suggests, he has drastically weakened the powers of the judicial and legislative branches, suspended civil liberties, and curtailed human rights. Hence, the executive branch has consolidated power to rule the country with ‘an iron fist.’ These actions contaminated liberal democratic norms and principles in El Salvador. The public, nevertheless, supported him as they were exhausted by the previous left-wing regimes. Bukele pledged to improve public security and lower crime rates. Consequently, under his ‘state of exception’ act, 87,000 violent gang members were arrested, and many were thrown at the notorious CECOT – Terrorism Confinement Center. As a result, El Salvador’s crime rate has fallen sharply since 2022. People valued his ruthless mass incarceration effort as it brought public safety and security; Bukele had accomplished this near-impossible task in a few years that left-wing parties could not achieve even in decades. Thus, in 2024, he won a landslide re-election, securing 85% of the vote.
In 2023, Javier Milei, an eccentric libertarian economist, was elected as President of Argentina. While he was dismissed as not a serious contender, he ultimately garnered 55.7% of the vote. Milei vowed to fix Argentina’s enduring weak economy. When he entered the presidential race, 40% of the population was living in poverty, and inflation had soared to 140%. His initiatives to eliminate the Central Bank, remove government subsidies, privatise education and healthcare systems, and dollarise the economy resonated with both disenfranchised individuals and a large segment of the population fatigued by incumbency. Milei convinced voters that the traditional politicians, ‘political caste’ (la casta), were the parasites culpable for destroying the Argentine economy. His symbolic chainsaw, displayed during stump speeches, was meant to emphasise his austerity plan to revive the economy, which would entail restricting access to many government programs. Unlike Brazil and El Salvador, Milei ran on an economic platform, applying widespread financial fear and frustration as casus belli.
In late 2025, José Antonio Kast received 58% of the vote to become the President of Chile. During his campaign, he accentuated public fears about rising crime and irregular immigration as economic threats to the country. He admires Chilean dictator General Augusto Pinochet, under whose regime, 1973 to 1990, mass political killings and forced disappearances occurred. After democracy was restored in Chile following the Pinochet era, left-wing parties alternated in power. Kast aimed to change this left-wing pattern with a more authoritarian image. With Kast winning the election, far-right political culture has gained a strong foothold in Chile. This country was once a bastion of left-wing liberal democracy. Not anymore. In his victory speech, Kast said, “Chile needs order – order in the streets, in the state, in the priorities that have been lost.” Accordingly, he does not rule out sending the military into the streets to confront criminals, making drastic cuts to government spending, opposing abortion; additionally, he gave an ultimatum to irregular immigrants to leave the country by March 11, 2026, the day he was sworn in, or face deportations. So, ‘Order’ in Chile seems imminent.
The rise of the far-right movement in Latin America did not happen in isolation. There are two possible explanations for this trend. Left-wing incumbency fatigue made citizens feel that the status quo failed them by ignoring their needs and concerns, and the key issues that mattered most to voters were crime, economic insecurity, widespread corruption, and government inertia. As a result, voters turned to far-right parties that addressed their pressing issues. Far-right parties astutely gauged voters’ sentiments and leveraged them to boost their political influence.
Furthermore, President Trump’s inflammatory political rhetoric and actions also contributed to the rise of the far right in Latin America. For example, he threatened to cut U.S. funding if the Argentine people did not elect Milei’s party in the 2025 midterm election. Because of the threat, Milei’s party won the majority of seats. Additionally, Latin American far-right ideologues thrive on targeting voters who believe in strong law and order, Christian values, and cultural homogeneity. Their propaganda echo systems, which malign and otherwise people based on socio-cultural identity, have a profound impact on voters. Instilling fear in the public is the most powerful tool right-wing parties use to advance their agendas.
Everything has its season. Left-wing parties had theirs. Now, it is the season of the far right. Latin America is at an inflection point. Therefore, the momentum the far-right movement has accrued across the continent is likely to continue to flourish, making further inroads and undermining liberal democracy. Watch out, amigos!
The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author
The writer is a Doctoral Researcher, International Relations, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM)
