The Americas Quarterly Podcast

Ecuador is facing one of the most consequential moments in its recent history. President Daniel Noboa won reelection in April 2025 on a promise to restore public security, but despite an increasingly aggressive campaign against organized crime and closer ties with the United States, the country continues to struggle with entrenched criminal networks. Homicides are down about 8% this year after a record-setting 2025, and Noboa is increasingly compared to El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele. Now, local elections on November 29 will test Noboa’s political strength, with the main opposition party barred from running under its own name, and one of its top leaders in jail. Our guest is Sebastián Hurtado, co-founder and CEO of Prófitas, a political risk consultancy based in Quito.
Guest:
Sebastián Hurtado is founder and president of PRóFITAS, a leading political risk consultancy based in Quito.
Host:
Brian Winter is editor in chief of Americas Quarterly
If you would like to know more: 
Ecuador: Daniel Noboa’s Crackdown at a Crossroads by Will Freeman
The Ecuador-Colombia Trade Spat Is a Zero-Sum Game by Sebastián Hurtado
Ecuador: A 2026 Snapshot by Emilie Sweigart

Since María Corina Machado returned to Venezuela on October 25, the country’s politics feel different. Many hope the opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate will speed up Venezuela’s return to democracy. Since Nicolás Maduro’s capture in January, the interim government of Delcy Rodríguez has passed an amnesty law, released hundreds of political prisoners, and joined U.S.-backed talks with part of the opposition. Yet much of the old system is still standing. 
Many officials who ran the regime’s security apparatus remain in their posts, Foro Penal counts more than 300 political prisoners, and there is still no date for a presidential election. 
How much will Machado’s return shake up Venezuelan politics, and what has to happen before Venezuelans can vote in a credible election? Our guest is Alfredo Romero, a lawyer and the executive director of Foro Penal, a Venezuelan human rights organization that represents political prisoners.
Guest:
Alfredo Romero is Executive Director of Foro Penal.
Host:
Brian Winter is editor in chief of Americas Quarterly
If you would like to know more: 
REACTION: Machado’s Return to Venezuela Set to Test Democratic Transition by AQ Editors
Can Venezuela’s Push for Elections Succeed? by Benigno Alarcón Deza

Venezuela’s Complicated U.S. Oil Deal by Luis A. Pacheco
Venezuela’s Overwhelming Electricity Crisis by Francisco Morandi and Luisa Palacios
The Real Negotiation Venezuela Needs by Benigno Alarcón Deza

After a comeback and a win by more than four million votes, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva must now face a hostile Congress, nervous financial markets and an uncertain relationship with Washington. His opponent, Flávio Bolsonaro, has left for the United States, where he is alleging political persecution. 
Over a political career spanning more than 40 years, Lula has often evolved according to the needs of the moment. This time, will he take a more orthodox approach to the economy, with Brazil’s budget deficit approaching an unsustainable 10% of GDP? Will he bring more conservative figures into his government? And will he try to make peace with the Trump administration? 
Our guest is Fábio Zanini, editor of Painel, the political column of Folha de S.Paulo.
Guest:
Fábio Zanini is political columnist and editor at Folha de S.Paulo
Host:
Brian Winter is editor in chief of Americas Quarterly
If you would like to know more: 
REACTION: Lula Wins Brazil’s Presidency in Historic Comeback by AQ Editors
Brazil: Meet the Candidates 2026 by Emilie Sweigart 
Brazil’s Right Will Have Power Beyond the Presidency by Fernanda Magnotta
Trump Pushes the Bolsonaros to the Brink by Brian Winter

Arguably no country has been more exposed to Donald Trump's second term than Mexico. The country sends more than 80% of its exports to its neighboring nation and receives more than $60 billion a year in remittances from citizens living in the U.S. President Claudia Sheinbaum has navigated the relationship with notable pragmatism, but tensions are rising again over U.S. demands for greater security cooperation, extradition requests for Morena politicians, and uncertainty over the future of the USMCA. Should Mexico take a more confrontational approach, as Canada has? Or is it destined to accommodate Washington? Our guest, Vanessa Rubio-Márquez, author of AQ's latest cover story, argues for a middle path: Mexico can hold firm on its red lines with Washington while taking steps to put its own house in order. Rubio-Márquez is a former Mexican senator and deputy minister, a professor of practice at the London School of Economics School of Public Policy, and a senior advisor at McLarty Associates.

Latin America is having its best economic outlook since the commodities boom of the 2000s. Record commodity prices, a weak U.S. dollar, a privileged position in the global trade war—selling to both the U.S. and China— and a wave of business-friendly governments are creating conditions the region hasn't seen in decades. But Latin America has defied rosy predictions before, and the outlook remains uncertain in its three largest economies: Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina. 
Today on the podcast, we ask what a new takeoff would mean in practical terms for growth, the markets, and its citizens; take stock of the region's most relevant economies; and examine what could prevent this favorable moment from becoming a lasting reality.
Our guest is Ernesto Revilla, Chief Economist for Latin America at Citi and a member of AQ's editorial board.