Municipalization as Debureaucratization: Municipal Reform Movement in Nineteenth Century Chile

This article the efforts made by certain political actors to change Chilean municipal institutionality between 1854 and 1891. It shows that the initial design guaranteed central government control over the municipalities. This led political actors that are against an active role of the state, to seek to modify its design by giving municipalities greater autonomy. This study shows two issues that are relevant to the theoretical debate. First, bureaucratization generate conflicts, and even antibureaucratic reactions. Secondly, municipalization is not always a univocal concept, but rather that its content depends on the administrative characteristics and traditions of each territory.