The Brazilian Senate passed two landmark bills last week, one expanding freedom of information access and a second creating a truth commission to investigate dictatorship-era crimes.

Voters head to the polls October 30 for Colombia’s local elections. The country’s three biggest cities—Bogota, Medellin, and Cali—are holding fiercely fought mayoral competitions.

Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner accomplished what was widely expected on Sunday when she cruised to a reelection win.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced a record number of deportations for 2011—a fact which may have repercussions in next year’s election.

Early results from Bolivia's October 16 judicial elections indicate large-scale voiding of ballots. Observers say the vote amounts to the first electoral rebuff of President Evo Morales since he took office.

During his stop in Bogota, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas fell short of getting Colombia's support for Palestine's admission to the UN. But Abbas' Latin American outreach appears to fit into a global strategy to promote Palestinian recognition.

Peru’s President Ollanta Humala is tackling police corruption by purging two thirds of the force’s top generals—a move some see as an attempt to fill the ranks with allies.