However, despite decades of democracy, many countries still struggle to have free, fair and transparent polls, and seamless power changes. While a highly contested election is a sign of a working democracy, five concerning trends undermine the integrity of Africa’s electoral processes and quality of elections.
First is the lack of trust among political parties and voters in election management bodies. According to Afrobarometer, the number of citizens in Africa with little or no confidence in their national electoral commission rose from 41% to 55% between 2011/13 to 2021/23.
This mistrust is deeply rooted in how election management bodies are constituted. Their appointment processes are often not consultative and largely exclude opposition parties and other stakeholders. For example, the bodies in Ghana, Nigeria, Liberia and Zimbabwe have been accused of being dominated by ruling party loyalists.
Second, polls in Africa are undermined by weak transparency surrounding electoral processes. Electoral management bodies’ inability to build consensus across political divides on key aspects such as timelines, campaign restrictions and party funding raises suspicion and mistrust. This is worsened by incumbents’ control of these processes.
In countries that have experienced electoral disputes, e.g. Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, and Zimbabwe, concerns are often sparked by allegations of abuse of power by those in office and accusations of electoral commission bias against opposition parties. Mistrust is usually exacerbated by the ruling party’s influence over dispute resolution mechanisms or courts.
The third concerning trend is cost. The average price of an election in Africa (US$4.20 per capita) is twice the world’s average and higher than the US$4 spent in Europe, North America and Australia (Chart 1). Estimates show that sub-Saharan Africa spent almost US$50 billion on polls from 2000-2018.
The fourth factor is fierce presidential and legislative campaigns that increase the threat of electoral violence. The rise of militant and armed vigilantes associated with political parties, such as in Ghana, has become a significant disruption to free and fair voting and the integrity of election outcomes. These armed groups are often used to intimidate voters and suppress their choices, especially in opponents’ strongholds.
In some cases, ruling parties use the state security service to intimidate voters, as witnessed in the 2023 elections in Nigeria, Zimbabwe and Madagascar, among others.
Finally, using misinformation and disinformation to undermine elections is a growing global trend, exacerbated by fake news and its links to artificial intelligence.
These negative trends jeopardise democracy across the continent. In countries such as Gabon and Guinea, the lack of free and fair elections has been used as a justification or decoy for military coups. In others, the poor quality of elections often leads to protracted election petitions affecting the smooth running of the state.
To improve election quality, election management bodies must be truly independent of external control and manipulation. This can be achieved by appointing competent people through consultative processes, ensuring their security of tenure, and providing them with adequate resources needed to function.
The bodies themselves should work on securing public trust and confidence by building consensus on electoral reforms across the political divide in a transparent manner.
Guest Editorial - ISS – Institute for Security Studies