Reflections on the Election Super Cycle from a Gender Lens (Africa)
Across the world in 2024, more than 70 national elections were held, affecting more than half the world’s population. Some trends emerged from these elections including the ousting from office of incumbents and voting into office of more rightwing populists. This brief essay explores these trends in Africa’s 2024 elections, as well as the implications of the 2024 elections for women’s representation in legislatures and executives across the continent.
Elections in Africa in 2024 were located mostly in southern and northwest Africa – and largely conformed with global trends. So, for example, in South Africa and Botswana, incumbent political parties that had been in power for 30 and 60 years, respectively, were voted out of office. Incumbents were also voted out in Senegal, Mauritius and Ghana, among others. Also, sources such as Afrobarometer have reported that ‘democracy is at risk’ in many African countries, with one recent intervention suggesting that a ‘democratic counter-wave has washed over the continent.’
Read the full article here
Across the world in 2024, more than 70 national elections were held, affecting more than half the world’s population. Some trends emerged from these elections including the ousting from office of incumbents and voting into office of more rightwing populists. This brief essay explores these trends in Africa’s 2024 elections, as well as the implications of the 2024 elections for women’s representation in legislatures and executives across the continent.
Elections in Africa in 2024 were located mostly in southern and northwest Africa – and largely conformed with global trends. So, for example, in South Africa and Botswana, incumbent political parties that had been in power for 30 and 60 years, respectively, were voted out of office. Incumbents were also voted out in Senegal, Mauritius and Ghana, among others. Also, sources such as Afrobarometer have reported that ‘democracy is at risk’ in many African countries, with one recent intervention suggesting that a ‘democratic counter-wave has washed over the continent.’
Read the full article here