The New Politics of the Poor: State, Leaders and Popular Organizations in the Provision of Basic Services. A Case Study in a Slum in Buenos Aires

Abstract

Since the 2000s the literature on clientelism has been revitalized in Argentina. Most approaches are located between positions that privilege one of the following dimensions: (a) the importance of the “problem-solving network” for the urban poor, or (b) the importance of “vote-buying in exchange for personal favors” for the clientelistic party. However, neither of them points out that some local political brokers undertook activities regarding the provision of basic services for the entire community since the 1990s. During the last decade, as a result of a new policy, this process has become more complex and pronounced due to the emergence of new popular organizations funded by publics programs. Some of these organizations have been identified as the seeds of the “piqueteros” movement. However, during this period of time, the literature has not emphasized the work of local actors in terms of the provision of basic services. Utilizing a single-case study focusing on a particular slum, this paper has two goals: (i) to show the importance of the aforementioned local actors in the provision of services; and (ii) to explore the changes they experienced over the last decade.

Keywords

• organizaciones populares
• líderes locales
• Estado
• servicios básicos
• asentamientos