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Describe the electoral systems of the contemporary states of Africa

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There are two dominant electoral systems in contemporary states. These are
proportional systems of representation and non proportional systems of representation.

1.Proportional Systems.

This system of elections takes into account the various social and economic groupings
in a state. It aims at giving representation to classes or groups which have been
accepted as distinct socio-economic identities. This includes among others; farmers,
workers, traders, industrialists, pastoralists, urban dwellers, women, men, youth,
persons with disabilities just to name a few.
The aim of proportion representation is have each of the groups/classes that have uniform
identities to get representation in parliament in accordance to the total population or numbers.
For instance women consist of almost 50% of the total population in many African countries
and therefore they could demand proportional representation of 50% of the seats in parliament.
The whole argument of proportional representation is to have each sector that has an identity
but which feels marginalized to have representation in parliament in accordance to the ration of their population. Proportional electoral system is not common in Africa. Currently it’s only
South Africa which has adopted proportional electoral system.
Elections are recognized as legitimate instruments of regime change. Liberal democratic theory
does assume that the citizenry use the electoral process to put in place a system of government
that is responsive to the needs of the people. Electoral systems determine the means by which
votes are translated into seats This topic aims at examining the role of the electoral system and process in promoting modern governments in Africa.

2. Non Proportional Systems.
This system has many terminologies that describe its form of operation. It is referred to as
simple majority electoral system which means that the candidate with the highest number of
votes automatically becomes the winner. It is also referred to as the principal agent system.
This system assumes that once a candidate is elected he/she will represent the interests of
everyone across the board. It also assumes that in parliament representatives are to articulate
issues of all citizens and not confine themselves to a sector or class. This system has also been called” the winner takes it all”. This system has been blamed for electoral violence in African countries. The losers do not have a chance to implement their policies. In most cases the total votes of the losers are usually more than 50% of the votes of the winner. More than 60% of African countries practice simple majority electoral system.

Titany answered the question on October 28, 2021 at 11:53

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Describe the electoral systems of the contemporary states of Africa

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