The whole idea behind independent candidates is the hope that their inclusion might improve the accountability of parliamentarians to the voters. The bill doesn’t do that.
Eight presidential candidates on stage during Kenya’s first presidential debate in 2013.
Joan Pereruan/AFP via Getty Images
The MPLA is using all instruments at its disposal to hobble a new united opposition front ahead of the Angola election.
South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir (right) and his deputy Riek Machar shake hands in Addis Ababa to signify a peace deal in September, 2018.
AFP via Getty Images
South Africans are increasingly dissatisfied with democracy because of its failure to address inequality.
Zimbabwe’s opposition Citizens Coalition for Change supporters attend an election campaign rally in Harare, in February. Zimbabwe, 20 February.
EPA-EFE/Aaron Ufumeli
Most citizens feel that it is pointless to vote because it won’t change anything.
Former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe greets supporters massed at his party headquarters shortly before his ouster in 2017.
Jekesai Njikizana/AFP via Getty Images
Leaders typically spread power among their ‘rival allies’ to keep it and co-opt enough of those elites in exchange for political support.
Displaced women and children shelter in temporary camps in Metuge, after fleeing from armed militants in Cabo Delgado, northern Mozambique.
EFE-EPA/Luisa Nhantumbo
Study shows that Mozambique 1992 peace agreement was never the success it was claimed to be. The country’s democracy remains weak.
Eswatini King Mswati II’s despotic rule is increasingly under pressure from citizens yearning for democracy.
Edwin Remsberg/VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
The 2021 election will define for citizens important aspects of South Africa’s political future. What is the governing ANC’s future, and what was the impact of President Ramaphosa on this election?
President Tshisekedi’s government no longer has the excuse that it’s being hampered by the dead hand of his predecessor Joseph Kabila’s cabal.
Late Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s, seen in this 2004 photograph, is one leader whose legacy will linger for long.
Photo by Hocine Zaourar/AFP via Getty Images
The optimism Angolan president João Lourenço’s election generated four years ago has dwindled as electoral promise after another have failed to materialise.
The militarisation of the Zimbabwean government raises serious questions about who really wields political power - President Emmerson Mnangagwa or army leaders.
Mujahid Safodien/AFP via Getty Images
The extent of democracy capture varies markedly between countries. It’s much higher in states such as Zimbabwe, where the government has never changed hands.
King Letsie III of Lesotho. Frustration with politicians has led to a rise in popularity of the monarchy in recent times.
CChris Jackson via Getty Images
A monarch with absolute powers is just as dangerous as self-serving politicians in a democracy.
Supporters of the M5 opposition movement show their support for the military junta, calling for a new and inclusive Mali in Bamako in June.
EFE-EPA/Hadama Diakite