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“It Was Once a Radical Democratic Proposal”: Theories of Gradual Institutional Change in Brazilian Participatory Budgeting

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 December 2018

Françoise Montambeault
Françoise Montambeault*
Affiliation:
Françoise Montambeault is an associate professor of political science at the Université de Montréal.
*
francoise.montambeault@umontreal.ca
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Abstract

Because of its early positive assessments, participatory budgeting (PB) has been and continues to be praised by several policymakers, and the Brazilian model has become an institutional blueprint around the world. No one questions the way the model has evolved in Brazilian municipalities with a long tradition of PB, but it was institutionalized there through practice and not through state legislation. It is thus highly permeable to political will and evolving ideas. Looking at the case of Belo Horizonte, where it was implemented in 1993, this study argues that while the political rhetoric of PB has remained central to political discourse over time, a significant but gradual policy change has occurred in practice. This change has important implications: not only does it have an impact on the policy outcomes of PB, but it also contributes to delegitimating the process for its participants, abetting its gradual deinstitutionalization.

Keywords

participatory budgetinginstitutional changeBelo HorizonteBrazil
Type
Research Article
Information
Latin American Politics and Society , Volume 61 , Issue 1 , February 2019 , pp. 29 - 53
Copyright
© 2019 University of Miami 

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References

Author Interviews

All interviews took place in Belo Horizonte.

Afonso. 2014. Longtime PB delegate; president of a neighborhood association. July 30.Google Scholar
Ananias, Patrus. 2014. PT mayor of Belo Horizonte, 1993–97; originator of PB in Belo Horizonte. August 28.Google Scholar
Claudia. 2014. Ex-PB delegate. July 28.Google Scholar
Efigênia. 2014. Vila neighborhood association president in Centro-Sul; activist. July 29.Google Scholar
Head of City Planning. 2014. City of Belo Horizonte. August 1.Google Scholar
Mônica. 2014. Ex-employee of City Plannimg, City of Belo Horizonte. August 4.Google Scholar
PB Administrator 1. 2014. Employee of City Planning, City of Belo Horizonte. July 25.Google Scholar
PB Administrator 2. 2014. Employee of City Planning, City of Belo Horizonte. July 25.Google Scholar
Pimentel, Fernando. 2008. Mayor of Belo Horizonte, 2000–2008. August 19.Google Scholar
Roberto. 2014. President of a neighborhood association, Centro-Sul; PB delegate. August 28.Google Scholar
Rogério. 2014. PB delegate from Barreiro; activist. August 28.Google Scholar

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