In a 2025 marked by punitive polls, fragmented systems, and democracies under pressure, Latin America confirmed that voting remains an instrument of change, but no longer a guarantee of stability or democratic strengthening.
Mandatory voting in Latin America reveals a paradox: although the law requires participation, actual turnout depends far more on citizens’ trust than on sanctions.
The decline in electoral participation reveals a troubling crisis: when the people stop voting, democracy becomes hollow and moves, by its own decision, toward ‘voluntary servitude’.
The 2025 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to María Corina Machado recognizes her peaceful struggle for Venezuelan democracy and rekindles hope for change in the country.
