April 2024, Volume 35, Issue 2
The Truth About Africa’s Coups
Praetorian politics are not making a comeback. Africa’s recent putsches have more to do with democracy’s failure to deliver than any fondness for military rule.
Kennedy Ochieng’ Opalo
Kennedy Ochieng’ Opalo is associate professor in Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. He is the author of Legislative Development in Africa: Politics and Postcolonial Legacies (2019). He is author of the Substack newsletter An Africanist Perspective.
July 2012, Volume 23, Issue 3
African Elections: Two Divergent Trends
Regular elections have become a fixture of political life throughout sub-Saharan Africa, but there are now “two Africas” in this regard: one where elections bring the blessings of greater political openness and competition, and another where elections are, in effect, one more tool that authoritarians use to retain power.