This volume examines democracy and elections in Africa, taking stock of the state of constitutional democracy on the continent after the democratic gains of the 1990s and 2000s, focusing on how competitive politics or multiparty democracy can be realized and how, through competition, such politics could lead to better policy and practice outcomes.

Charles M. Fombad is Professor of Law and head of the African Comparative Constitutional Law Unit of the Institute for International and Comparative Law in Africa (ICLA), based at the Faculty of Law of the University of Pretoria.
Nico Steytler is South African Research Chair in Multi-level Government, Law and Policy, at the University of the Western Cape.

• Introduction: Democracy, Elections, and Constitutionalism in Africa


• Part 1: Making Multiparty Democracy Work in Africa


• 1.: Charles M. Fombad: Democracy, Elections and Constitutionalism in Africa: Setting the Scene


• 2.: Nicholas Cheeseman: How Could We Design Democracy to Make it Work in the African Context


• 3.: Adem Abebe and Charles M. Fombad: The Africa Union and the Advancement of Democracy: The Problem of Unconstitutional Retention of Governmental Power.


• 4.: Nico Steytler: Local Multiparty Democracy in Africa


• Part 2: Authoritarian Multiparty Democracy: Case Studies


• 5.: Tinashe Chigwata: Multiparty Democracy in Zimbabwe After the Adoption of the 2013 Constitution


• 6.: Henning Melber: Competitive Authoritarianism in a Constitutional Democracy: The Case of SWAPO in Namibia


• 7.: Zemelak Ayitenew Ayele: Constitutionalism and Electoral Authoritarianism in Ethiopia: From EPRDF to EPP


• 8.: Teresa Noguira Pinto: Constitutionalism and Developmental Authoritarianism: Power, Law and Legitimacy in Post-Genocide Rwanda


• 9.: Sherif Elgebeily: Egypt's Plasticine Constitution: Autocratic Democracy and the 2018 Presidential Elections


• Part 3: Enhancing the Role of Political Parties in Making Democracy Work


• 10.: Edwin Babeiya: Internal Party Democracy in Tanzania: A Reflection on Three Decades of Multiparty Politics


• 11.: Zelalem Defigie: Party-political Financing, Democracy and Constitutionalism in Ethiopia (1991-2018)


• Part 4: Enhancing Democratic Quality Through Electoral Processes


• 12.: Rotimi Suberu: Nigeria in Search of a Credible Electoral Administration: Recent Reforms and Persistent Challenges


• 13.: O'Brien Kaaba and Charles M. Fombad: Adjudication of Disputed Presidential Elections in Africa


• Part 5: Promoting Inclusive and Participatory Democracy


• 14.: Jill Cottrell Ghai: Women's Participation in Elections and Legislatures in Kenya Under the 2010 Constitution


• 15.: Makanatsa Makonese: How Zimbabwe's 2013 Constitution Addresses Women's Election and Participation in Parliament


• Part 6: General Conclusion


• 16.: Charles M. Fombad: Reversing the Surging Tide towards Authoritarian Democracy in Africa