University of Michigan Press Water and Politics: Clientelism and Reform in Urban Mexico

Most of the world’s population lives in cities in developing countries, where access to basic public services, such as water, electricity, and health clinics, is either inadequate or sorely missing. Through the lens of urban water provision, this book shows how politicians fail to provide reliable and high quality public services because they often benefit politically from manipulating public service provision for electoral gain. In many young democracies, politicians exchange water service for votes or political support, attempting to reward allies or punish political enemies. Surprisingly, the political problem of water provision has become more pronounced in many young democracies, as water service represents a valuable political currency in resource-scarce environments. When do politicians forgo the clientelistic manipulation of water services and invest in programmatic and universal service provision? Water and Politics finds that middle-class and industrial elites play an important role in generating pressure for public service reforms. Based on extensive field research and combining process tracing with a subnational comparative analysis of eight Mexican cities, Water and Politics constructs a framework for understanding the construction of universal service provision in these weak institutional settings. Review "Herrera has written an important book. It illuminates a crucial and hitherto undiscovered dynamic in a crucial policy domain." --Latin American Politics and Society "A refreshing effort to unravel the issue of why young democracies can bring about either modern, accountable, and effective governments or deficient, unreliable, and clientelistic ones." --Perspectives on Politics "While few studies have examined how public services--water and sanitation especially--become part of clientelistic and patronage based relationships, this book offers an enriching understanding of the key factors that shape these relationships." --Journal of Developmental Studies"Water and Politics brings new empirical insight and understanding about the provision of public services through the experience of water and sanitation reforms in Mexico following democratization. Its analysis is relevant for academics, policymakers, government leaders, and development practitioners alike." --Environment & Urbanization"Fills a gap in the literature on reform by solving a puzzle not explained in previous research, which has tended to focus on the role of crisis, ideology, robust citizen networks, strong leadership, and electoral competition . . . Recommended" --Choice Reviews About the Author Veronica Herrera is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Connecticut.