The Impact of Election Administration on the Legitimacy of Emerging Democracies: A New Comparative Politics Research Agenda

Abstract

This article seeks to push the development of a new sub-field of research in the field of democratisation and institutional design, namely the relationship between the institutionalisation of electoral politics - including the administration of elections - and the development of political legitimacy and democratic consolidation in new democracies. Focus is on the conduct of elections and research questions are formulated to enable us to gauge the effectiveness and contribution of election related institutional choices and the impact of various stages of the implementation process. An analysis of eight African countries reveals that individual experiences related to the conduct of elections appears to have a direct bearing on how the sense of political efficacy develops in individuals, and that this is an important factor behind the development of legitimacy and progression towards democratic consolidation.