Latin Americans are worryingly relaxed about authoritarianism

For the first time since 2015 there are more Latin Americans who think their country is progressing than those who think it is moving backwards, though almost half see stagnation (see chart 1). Only a bare majority think that democracy is preferable to other modes of government, but that is still a small increase on recent years. Though scathing about their politicians and institutions, Latin Americans are a shade less dissatisfied with the way their political systems work in practice. Nayib Bukele, the elected autocrat who runs El Salvador with an iron fist, continues to be by far the most admired leader in the region.