Conferencia: Futuro del Capitalismo en el Mundo y en América Latina
Despite being known as the most stable and oldest democracy in Latin America, Costa Rica had an unprecedented electoral episode in early 2018. In the light of same-sex marriage legal approval, an evangelical conservative party openly against it suddenly took off in popularity during the campaign. For months the country experienced a tense polarizing atmosphere. In this research, I implement an Instrumental Variable econometric approach using district-level data since 1973 to rigorously test whether lower education and poverty fueled conservative support. My findings suggest that historical economic insecurity did cause conservative support against human rights.