From Autonomy to Alignment: The Rise of Subordinated Governance in South American Regionalism, the Cases of Brazil and Colombia

Abstract

Objective/context: This article examines the transformation of South American regional governance in the 2010s, distinguishing between autonomist and subordinate governance. Methodology: The paper proposes a causal analytical model linking the political-ideological orientation of governments (independent variable) to the type of regional governance (dependent variable), with foreign policy orientation toward regionalism as an intervening variable. The model is operationalized through three dimensions: ideology, institutions, and geopolitical identity. Methodologically, the study uses Anckar’s (2008) Most Different Systems Design (MDSD) to comparatively analyze the cases of Brazil under Jair Bolsonaro’s government and Colombia under Iván Duque’s government. Conclusions: The article argues that the rise of conservative and neo-patriotic right-wing governments spurred a shift toward subordinate governance, characterized by foreign policies that prioritized alignment with the United States and rejected post-hegemonic regionalism. Originality: By introducing subordinate governance as an analytical category, the article contributes to debates on regional governance, South American regionalism, and foreign policy analysis and offers an analytical framework for explaining the region’s recent geopolitical transformations.