Angola's second post-war elections: The alchemy of change

This situation report asserts that the second post-war elections in Angola, in August 2012, have become a lens through which to observe the political changes this emerging African powerhouse will face in the coming years. The author makes a number of assertions:

• President Jose Eduardo dos Santos was elected for the first time after 33 years in power, but the governing strategy of the preceding decades will have to be rethought
• The ruling MPLA party continues to ignore the calls for reform that are emerging from the grassroots, civil society, the opposition and within its own ranks
• These polls showed the Angolan regime that rhetoric would no longer suffice. Angolans today expect more from their government and no longer want to be ruled in the same way