Cubanos y españoles en Ecuador: voto migrante, (re)socialización política e identidad partidaria (1979-2018)

Abstract

Academic studies on transnationalism and migrant political participation continue to debate the ways on how political (re)socialization influences the time in which non-residents (emigrants) and non-citizens (immigrants) are granted political/electoral rights. With a transnational perspective, this investigation analyzes the vote of Cubans and Spaniards eradicated in Ecuador from 1979 - 2018. Twenty semi-structured interviews were carried out on top of the exhaustive revision of official documents and secondary sources on Cubans and Spaniards in Ecuador. The gathered data was then triangulated to indicate theoretical implications on concepts such as democracy, ideology and partisanship through the migrant (re)socialization processes. It was found that the activities linked to transnational practices, such as the extension of enfranchisement rights, are affected by political (re)socialization. This indicates an evident polarization between Cubans and Spaniards in regards to their approach to democracy and political participation. Most Spaniards have had a democratic political socialization, which has driven a heightened political critique to the Ecuadorian democracy. Cubans, on the other hand, have experienced an extreme (re)socialization process (from authoritarianism to and emergent democracy), for which they further appraise institutional changes from one country in relation to the other.