State/nation relationship, economic development model and party system in Chile: brief historical review as an attempt to understand a change of time

Abstract

This article reviews the stages through which the Chilean State moved from the 1930s onward, particularly concerning the transformations in the role it played managing the national economy, and the impact these changes had in the link between political parties and society or, in a broader sense, between State and nation. We observe two clearly defined stages. The first characterized by the constitution of the State as a key element of the economic model development and an important organizer of society; task –this last one- propitiated by the mediating action of political parties, which established deep bonds with different social organizations, enabling the channelling of demands and distribution of benefits. The second stage, which began with the breakdown of democracy in 1973, shows the State’s withdrawal and the imposition of the market as the focal point of the economic model as well as the main mechanism behind the distribution of goods and services. The return to democracy –in 1990– was characterized by this “market-centric” reality and by the new institutional structure conceived during the military dictatorship. This shaped the party system reorganization and forced a shift in interaction strategies between political parties and society, prioritizing political marketing and the use of new mass media over a direct relationship with the now deflated social organizations. This historical review may help understand the current representation and participation crisis seen today in Chile.