WHATS AT STAKE IN SOUTH AFRICAS AND MALAWIS ELECTIONS? Malawi and South Africa’s election cycle is identical. Both had their first democratic multi-party elections 20 years ago this month. Recently, both countries have been rocked by corruption scandals. I visited both countries in the last few weeks, and in both, election fever was in full swing, with every available space plastered with party posters. Politics and the outcome of the election filled the media and dominated conversation. Yet the excitement is tinged with more than a small sense of disillusionment. No one I met or spoke to said they were not going to vote, but most were unenthusiastic. Higher levels of inequality are strongly associated with lower levels of voter turnout among the poor and wider civic disengagement. Disillusion with democracy is dangerous.
Posted on: Wed, 07 May 2014 18:34:29 +0000