Electoral Reform Research Articles

Does proportional representation increase redistribution? Evidence from early 20th century Norwegian municipalities

Countries that use proportional representation (PR) tend to have higher levels of redistribution. However, persuasive research on electoral system choice has demonstrated that countries only adopt PR under particular circumstances, such as the presence of a strong left-wing opposition or a need for coordination between opposing economic actors. A fundamental, unresolved question is therefore if the strong relationship between the use of PR and redistribution is due to PR electoral rules or these background factors. Taking advantage of an electoral reform to early 20th century Norwegian local elections, we find that municipalities that were mandated to use PR increased tax rates and resources spent on the poor but also redistributed less in the first place. We further show that the reform did not increase left-wing party seat shares but did increase political mobilization. This evidence is consistent with moderate parties increasing redistribution in order to preempt left-wing party gains.

Civil society and contested elections in electoral autocracies: Dissent and caution in Uganda’s 2016 elections

ABSTRACT Civil society organizations (CSOs) respond differently to challenges from autocratic governments and opposition parties around the regulation and content of elections. Building on research on autocratic state regulation of CSOs, this article contributes a sharper focus on their horizontal relations to increase understanding of their diverse strategies of engagement. The article argues that even in contexts dominated by a heavy-handed state, relations between CSOs are especially important during elections, when they are most mobilized and motivated to build coalitions. The results of a study into how non-governmental associations (NGOs) and faith-based organizations (FBOs) engaged with electoral reforms around the Uganda 2016 general elections show how relations of cooperation, competition, or conflict between civil society organizations modify the effects of state regulation by adding to their incentives and capacities. The findings help explain the many ways CSOs engage with each other, the population, the state, and the opposition, including their submission to and protests against the autocratic order. Horizontal relations of conflict and competition among the FBOs prevented effective coalitions and facilitated submissive politics during Uganda’s 2016 elections. Relations among governance NGOs, however, were more cooperative and generated protest alliances, even though those alliances proved difficult to sustain.

Propostas de reforma do sistema eleitoral no Brasil: o que pensa a ciência política brasileira?

The present paper maps the position of 51 Brazilian political scientists about electoral reform in the period after the 1988 Constitution. For this purpose, the research selected scientific articles, but also books, interviews and texts in newspapers. Five main streams were identified in the specialized literature on the reform of the electoral system: (1) the one that defends the proportional vote of the open list; (2) the proportional closed list voting; (3) the proportional vote of a flexible list, here also incorporated the model of “single transferable vote”; (4) the one that defends some type of majority vote; (5) and the one that seeks to mix proportional mechanisms with the majority in a system known as “mixed vote”. The paper concludes that the proportional system is preferred by most Brazilian political scientists who have intervened in the public sphere in the last twenty years, with a certain preference for the transition to the closed list model.

Revolution, Elite Fear, and Electoral Institutions

We present a systemic threat theory to explain the introduction of Proportional Representation (PR). If facing a revolutionary threat, incumbents agree to enact electoral reforms such as PR to secure the stability of the parliamentary system, even if this could imply their own personal electoral loss. We argue that the theory can help explain the largest wave of PR adoptions in history, namely in the years immediately after the Bolshevik revolution in 1917. Incumbents came to over-estimate the true revolutionary threat in Europe. Simultaneously, reformist parliamentarian socialists came to push for PR to weaken the radicals within their party. Incumbents and reformist socialists could therefore support the same system. We test this using qualitative and quantitative data from Norway's adoption of PR in 1919.

A 2011-es választási reform kihatása az országgyűlési választásokra II.

A radical electoral reform took place in Hungray in 2011, as a consequence of the sweepingvictory of the Fidesz-KDNP coalition in 2010. The government initiated and implimenteda reform which was not based on a consensus of all political parties. Taking advantage of itspolitical position (qualified majority government), Fidesz introduced among other changes thewiner compensation, and gave voting right to non-resident Hungarians. The present paper triesto present some of the value-based and interest-oreinted arguments related to the reform of2011, showing that the real (power) interests were hushed up, while the government tried tolegitimize the electoral reform based on several value-oriented arguments.

Purifying Suffrage: The Conservative Attack on Voter Registration in Pre‐Violencia Colombia

This article aims to contribute to the new electoral history by examining a specific practice of democracy, the voter registration card, known in Colombia as the citizenship card (cédula). After pursuing the themes of electoral reform and universal suffrage in a broader sense, the article outlines the card's history from its inception in 1929 to its role in the polemics over electoral corruption by the Conservative Party, which ranged over the period before the Violencia. While national‐level politics are emphasised, the impact of the card at the municipal level also is suggested, as the critical link between the national and the local.

Strengthening the Rule of Law and Good Governance amid COVID-19 Pandemic in the Global South

Disproportionate curtailment measures against the COVID-19 pandemic alongside compulsory vaccination (in the midst of rumours and conspiracy theories) have contributed to vaccination hesitancy, data and surveillance monitoring without due regard to civil and political rights. The absence of due regard to these rights by governments, undermine the observance of rule of law and good governance. Consequently, there have been sweeping implications on public order and security, disruption of electoral process and the right to dignity through torture and unlawful use of force. Socio-economic rights violations, relaxation of public procurement mechanisms, lack of capacity to deliver essential services, disinformation, perversion of justice, and gender-based violence have also overwhelmed the entire global health care system. The paper assesses curtailment measures against COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on rule of law and good governance in the Global South towards a better COVID-19 stimulus and recovery packages. It adopts doctrinal research method by relying on relevant statutes, international instruments, judicial decisions and literature. It finds that the discriminatory, inequitable curtailment measures and insufficient governmental social protections and economic supports, constitute “multiplier threat” that produces structural violence against vulnerable, marginalised communities and foreign nationals. The pandemic has created scientific uncertainty that necessitates global solidarity and scientific precautionary measures through digital and telemedicine leading to important health management. The paper calls for international democracy support for electoral reforms and United Nations oversight mechanisms for rule of law and good governance to promote transparency and accountability in the management of COVID-19 pandemic.

The short-term effects of electoral reforms

While electoral reforms clearly affect how seats are (re)distributed among parties immediately after their adoption, they do not significantly change the (re)distribution of votes among parties. As political knowledge is positively related to turnout, we argue that the effect of majoritarian electoral reforms on the number of parties is contingent upon the turnout in the last election prior to the reform. Specifically, the lower the turnout level in the previous election, the more effective the majoritarian reform will be. However, the psychological effect of proportional reforms relies on the interplay between elites and voters and is highly uncertain. The argument is tested using aggregated data from 43 major electoral reforms worldwide from 1945 to 2020 and individual data from the first election held in New Zealand after the 1993 electoral reform.

Do disabled people also vote? Electoral frameworks and voting participation in Nigeria’s 2019 elections

As voting represents the peak of citizen engagement in politics, this article assessed electoral laws and guidelines, and how they influenced the voting participation of disabled people during Nigeria’s 2019 general elections. It relied on the qualitative and quantitative methods to source data from key participants, including disabled students at the Federal College of Education (Special) Oyo, Nigeria’s main training institution for disabled people. The data were subjected to descriptive statistics and contently analysed. The article revealed that beyond constitutional provisions guaranteeing equal participation of all, legislations such as the 2010 Electoral Act, where well implemented, positively influenced the voting participation of disabled people. However, challenges of braille ballot papers, transportation restriction, and stigmatization adversely affected their voting participation. The article offers recommendations for enhanced inclusion of disabled people and for closing the disability gap in future elections. Points of Interest The Electoral Act (as amended) provides opportunities for enhanced voting participation of disabled people during elections in Nigeria but majority of them are not aware of these provisions. The research found that the electoral officials did not follow all the provisions of the Electoral Act during the 2019 elections, and this affected the voting participation of many disabled people. Non-availability of brail ballot papers and sign language interpreter at the voting centers as well as restriction placed on mobility on the day of election restricted the participation of disabled people in the 2019 general elections in Nigeria. The study recommended an improvement in the implementation of the Electoral Act by the electoral officials to improve voting participation of disabled people in Nigeria. The study recommended that electoral reforms that include electronic voting system and transmission of results should be implemented and strengthened in subsequent elections in Nigeria.

On the Way to Limited Competitiveness: Political Consequences of the 2011 Electoral Reform in Hungary

AbstractThis article tests the effects of a new electoral system in Hungary that was introduced by the governing FIDESZ party in 2011. We are especially concerned with the shape of single‐member district (SMD) level electoral competition following a significant transformation that tends to be viewed as serving FIDESZ's goal of preserving its constitutional majority. The results show not only transformation of Hungarian electoral politics between 2010 and 2018 elections but also the fact that the return of bipolarization is far from reality in Hungarian electoral politics. On one hand, the reform resulted in an increased number of districts with clear dominance of the two strongest parties nationally, but on the other hand, this trend was connected to asymmetrical bipartism, with clear advantage of the FIDESZ. Furthermore, there was a persistently high number of SMDs where the competition took place between the FIDESZ and one of the third‐place parties.

Independent Candidacy and Electoral Reform: New Nation Movement NPC v President of the Republic of South Africa

In the New Nation case, the Constitutional Court declared the provisions of the Electoral Act that prevent independent candidates from competing in provincial and national elections unconstitutional. It ruled that the impugned provisions violated independent candidates' constitutional rights to stand for public office, to freedom of association and to dignity. In a minority judgment, Froneman J disagreed and held that the Constitution contemplates a right to contest elections as a party-nominee only. The differences between the majority and minority judgments are largely the result of distinct interpretive approaches. The majority conducted an analysis of the right to stand for public office within a restricted textual framework that has the potential to disturb the harmonious inter-relationship between the right and the electoral and parliamentary framework for its realisation. This result flows from the fact that the Constitution still reflects the exclusively party-based electoral and parliamentary systems of its predecessor in several important respects. At best, this situation may result in independents being largely at the mercy of political parties for meaningful execution of their legislative and oversight obligations. At worst, they may be excluded from exercising core parliamentary functions altogether. Therefore, to avoid disturbing the normative coherence between the right to stand for public office, the foundational democratic values, and the electoral and parliamentary arrangements, constitutional amendments appear to be necessary for the implementation of the court's order. In any event, expectations about the contribution to electoral reform of allowing independents to contest elections must be tempered by the low political impact of independent representatives on governance, as well as the ambivalence surrounding the democratic functionality of independent candidacy, when measured against the values of transparency and accountability.

Independent Candidacy and Electoral Reform: New Nation Movement NPC v President of the Republic of South Africa

In the New Nation case, the Constitutional Court declared the provisions of the Electoral Act that prevent independent candidates from competing in provincial and national elections unconstitutional. It ruled that the impugned provisions violated independent candidates' constitutional rights to stand for public office, to freedom of association and to dignity. In a minority judgment, Froneman J disagreed and held that the Constitution contemplates a right to contest elections as a party-nominee only. The differences between the majority and minority judgments are largely the result of distinct interpretive approaches. The majority conducted an analysis of the right to stand for public office within a restricted textual framework that has the potential to disturb the harmonious inter-relationship between the right and the electoral and parliamentary framework for its realisation. This result flows from the fact that the Constitution still reflects the exclusively party-based electoral and parliamentary systems of its predecessor in several important respects. At best, this situation may result in independents being largely at the mercy of political parties for meaningful execution of their legislative and oversight obligations. At worst, they may be excluded from exercising core parliamentary functions altogether. Therefore, to avoid disturbing the normative coherence between the right to stand for public office, the foundational democratic values, and the electoral and parliamentary arrangements, constitutional amendments appear to be necessary for the implementation of the court's order. In any event, expectations about the contribution to electoral reform of allowing independents to contest elections must be tempered by the low political impact of independent representatives on governance, as well as the ambivalence surrounding the democratic functionality of independent candidacy, when measured against the values of transparency and accountability.

Shoring up power: Electoral reform and the consolidation of authoritarian rule

Why do autocrats adopt proportional representation (PR)? Conventional wisdom suggests autocrats should prefer majoritarian electoral rules because they favor large parties. Yet, since 1945, autocrats have been almost three times more likely to institute reforms towards PR than majoritarianism. Existing literature suggests incumbents institute PR to divide the opposition. We explore another motivation: executives switch to PR to ensure discipline among allies. We argue that such reforms are most likely when autocrats have a particular need to impose discipline — when ruling parties are nascent. Empirically, we examine the conditions under which changes to PR are likely with cross-national data from all electoral autocracies between 1945 and 2012. Additionally, we investigate a prominent case — the 2005 switch to PR in Russia — to illustrate the mechanisms and show how the reform solved the problem of control, allowing the Kremlin to focus on selecting electorally strong candidates.

Election petition and the future of electoral reforms in Ghana

The results of Ghana’s 2012 and 2020 elections were challenged in the nation’s Supreme Court. Even though the court processes in both cases did not alter the election results, they nevertheless exposed monumental flaws in the electoral processes. The flaws in the 2012 electoral processes were exposed at the Supreme Court and featured in the final judgment of the court in a manner that allowed the Electoral Commission to initiate moves towards electoral reforms. However, the challenges of the 2020 elections, though exposed at the courts, were never featured in the final judgment of the Supreme Court. This paper discusses the implications of the 2020 election petition for the future of electoral reforms in Ghana. It argues that the rigid application of the letter of the law by the Supreme Court and the relegation to the background of the thorny issues of electoral challenges in the 2020 elections, would render the quest for further electoral reforms difficult. This would then make the future of any attempt to fine-tune the electoral processes quite bleak.

DR CONGO: Electoral Reform Protest

Africa Research Bulletin: Political, Social and Cultural SeriesVolume 59, Issue 5 p. 23586B-23587B Internal Developments DR CONGO: Electoral Reform Protest First published: 13 June 2022 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-825X.2022.10531.xRead the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume59, Issue5June 2022Pages 23586B-23587B RelatedInformation

Party leadership, electoral reform, and mandate-divide

AbstractPrevious studies had no consensus on whether a ‘mandate-divide’ exists between district and party-list legislators under the mixed-member system. I argued that previous studies ignored the role of the party. This article aims to explore the legislative consequences of the 2005 electoral reform and the role of parties in Taiwan. I analyzed the roll-call votes, considering abstention and absence as potential defection, along with interviews. The data cover from the fifth to eighth Legislative Yuan, two periods each before and after the electoral reform. The findings show that district legislators tended to defect from the party line than list proportional representation (PR) members in pre- and post-reform periods. However, district legislators only tended to be absent from the voting than list PR members after the electoral reform. Mandate-divide was present throughout the period, but differences were more salient before the reform. Besides, evidence stressing the influence of parties was revealed in the interviews. Party leaders enforce various punishments to enforce party discipline. The role of party became more important after the electoral reform. District legislators have higher absence rate after the electoral reform because they need to engage more in constituency service or avoid expressing their position on controversial issues. The ruling party tends to sanction the absence when they have majority in parliament.

The 2021 Czech Parliamentary Electoral Reform

The 2021 Czech Parliamentary Electoral Reform

English

Ghana’s multiparty democracy continues to attract global attention. While every election comes with its dynamics, it also provides valuable lessons for the country’s democratic maturity. Drawing mainly from desk study and using Linz and Stepan’s three dimensions of democratic consolidation, the study examined how the two presidential election petitions, 2012 and 2020, have catapulted the democratic drive of the country. The paper unearthed that the Ghanaian political demagogues are largely willing to stick to the rules of the game for democratic maturity. In addition, the judiciary in their rulings upheld the results of the two respective elections as declared by the Electoral Commission. However, the actions and the inactions of the jurists and rulings in the two cases have different implications for electoral reforms and democratic maturity in Ghana.   Key words: Presidential election petitions, democratic maturity, elections, Supreme Court, electoral commission, Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo Addo, John Dramani Mahama,  

Head: A Perfect Storm: Covid-19, Snap Elections, and Archaic Legal Framework

The Covid-19 pandemic has tremendous implications for democracy worldwide. Emergency measures undertaken to combat the pandemic tend to demonstrate a trade-off between public health and fundamental democratic principles. The Caribbean is not immune from this. This paper examines how Covid-19, and the calling of a snap election in Barbados scheduled for January 19, 2022, when combined with archaic election rules, led to serious implications for the conduct of the election, specifically regarding the ability of citizens to vote. The paper is divided into five sections, beginning with an introductory section. The second section examines the implications of Covid-19 for democratic participation. The third section explores the legal framework for the conduct of elections in Barbados and the limitations of that legal framework. The penultimate section discusses the implications of the snap election for electoral participation and electoral integrity. The paper ends on the need for electoral reform in the country.

Political participation of women and electoral competitiveness in the State of Mexico

The central argument of this paper is that electoral competitiveness is currently the main challenge for the political participation of women in Mexico. Thus, and based on the theory of the new institutionalism, it is analyzed how electoral reforms in matters of gender, from those that guaranteed voting to those that mandate equal integration, as well as the methodology of competitiveness blocks, represent mechanisms that promote the insertion of more women in popular vote positions. Finally, a series of adjustments are proposed to the conformation of the competitiveness blocks to improve their results.