• Electoral systems & reforms

Electoral systems & reforms

This document is a compilation of three research papers originally presented to the Research Committee on Comparative Sociology at the XVI World Congress of Sociology held in 2006. The first chapter examines perceptions and attitudes regarding the influence of ethnicity on politics in Kenya and Zambia. The paper finds that:

• in Kenya a very strong relationship between ethnic belonging and voter support exists - Kenyan voters tend to bloc vote with their ethnic group for the same party or presidential candidate
• in Zambia the number of bloc voting ethnic groups is fewer and the proportion of the population belonging to these groups is much smaller than in Kenya
• ethnicity is more pronounced in Kenyan policy making than in Zambian – primarily through ethnically biased resource distribution and ethnically inclined appointment policies
• politics in Kenya is a competition over the control of state patronage, and ethnic groups thus become competitors over limited state resources – hence there is a view of ethnic groups as having diametrically opposing interests in a zero-sum game
• in Zambia, the perception is that one does not require ethnic or regional representation in State House in order to feel included and protect one’s interests - this less exclusive notion of politics may result from a greater trust in either formal or informal institutions in Zambia
• ideological differences are of little consequence in Kenyan party politics

The behaviour of both leaders and voters ensures that there are very few, if any, national parties, (parties with support in all ethnic communities) in Kenya. In Zambia, however, the understanding is that of an ‘integrated party system’ where parties and presidential candidates strive for nation-wide support and in actuality also compete for the same votes.

The second chapter looks at the impact of the emergence of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) on Zimbabwe’s political scene.This gave rise to conflict between the centre and the local in the control of governance institutions – ZANU-PF, the ruling party, retained control of central government and national institutions, and the opposition took over municipal councils in the majority of urban centres.

The paper discusses these conflicts and finds that:

• there were intense struggles between the centre and the local for the control of urban councils
• this stemmed from two impulses, namely decentralisation and democratisation
• both impulses imply major concessions by the ruling elite sharing previously monopolised ‘space’, be it political, social or economic, which involves, in part, bringing other groups into the processes of governance

Democratisation and decentralisation imply increasing the degree of political competition and participation with political institutions being both the key battlegrounds and the prized trophies.
In Zimbabwe, this radically transformed governance space resulted in unprecedented centre-local conflicts, resulting in acrimony as the centre attempted to regain control of the local councils.

The third chapter highlights trends in the post-colonial political culture emerging under the previous liberation movement SWAPO of Namibia, and its impact upon political opposition parties.The paper finds:

• at independence, decolonisation not democratisation was the priority on the agenda for Namibia
• the SWAPO government has been characterised by growing political hegemony as the party constantly gains and consolidates political power and control leading to an abuse of state power
• limited democracy where democratic virtues and respect for the protection of human rights are lacking
  

The paper concludes by questioning whether the situation in Namibia is the responsibility of the dominant party in political power, exercising its hegemonic rule, or more a sign of the failure of political opposition parties unable to get their act together despite all odds.

• Full text of document
• Publisher details
• Send to a friend