Alberto Vergara Paniagua

Alberto Vergara is a Peruvian student committed to many aspects of Latin American politics and society. He has worked in public and private Peruvian institutions on issues of human rights, democracy building, decentralization, and transparency.

Alberto Vergara's research focuses on democracy in Latin America. In particular, he is interested in some de-democratisation processes of contemporary Latin American politics. "Even though traditional 'coup d'état' no longer appear in the continent, some countries suffer a new kind of authoritarianism. Why do some countries suffer this way and others do not?" he asks. His research deals with the institutionalisation of democracy, and the emergence of new kinds of authoritarianism. To explain these large phenomena, he concentrates on decentralization and political parties.

In 2007, he published the book "Ni Amnésicos ni Irracionales. Las elecciones peruanas de 2006 en perspectiva histórica" (Neither Amnesiac nor Irrational: the 2006 Peruvian Elections in their Historical Perspective). In the book, he explains the way in which citizens vote in Peru. He focuses especially on historical and institutional variables. The essay, which was given an award by the Universidad Católica del Peru, has been extensively read in Peru and sold out its first edition. Alberto has obtained a Ph.D. in Political Science at the Université de Montréal in August 2012. Currently, he is a Banting Post-doctoral Fellow at Harvard University.