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Political party strength and electoral violence

Author

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  • Hanne Fjelde

    (Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities, Uppsala University & Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO))

Abstract

Existing research on the causes of electoral violence has focused on structural determinants and election-specific characteristics but has paid less attention to the role of political agents that contest elections. This study addresses this gap by examining the relationship between the organizational strength of political parties and the risk of electoral violence. The study argues that strong political parties enhance the prospect for peaceful electoral dynamics for two reasons. First, having strong party organizations reduce incentives for violent electoral manipulation because these organizations enable more cost-efficient ways to mobilize voters. Second, strong party organizations constrain political actors from deploying electoral violence, both at the leadership and grassroot levels. The relationship between political party strength and electoral violence is studied by combining global data on the overall strength of political parties in the polity with data on violence across all national elections from 1946 to 2010. The statistical analysis accounts for a number of potentially confounding variables related to formal political institutions and election-specific characteristics. The results point to a statistically significant and substantively important association between strong political parties and a reduced risk of violent electoral conflict.

Suggested Citation

  • Hanne Fjelde, 2020. "Political party strength and electoral violence," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 57(1), pages 140-155, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:joupea:v:57:y:2020:i:1:p:140-155
    DOI: 10.1177/0022343319885177
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Ursula Daxecker, 2020. "Unequal votes, unequal violence: Malapportionment and election violence in India," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 57(1), pages 156-170, January.
    2. Turnbull, Megan, 2021. "When armed groups refuse to carry out election violence: Evidence from Nigeria," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    3. Sarah Birch & Ursula Daxecker & Kristine Höglund, 2020. "Electoral violence: An introduction," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 57(1), pages 3-14, January.
    4. Rubén Ruiz-Rufino & Sarah Birch, 2020. "The effect of alternation in power on electoral intimidation in democratizing regimes," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 57(1), pages 126-139, January.
    5. Ezequiel Gonzalez-Ocantos & Chad Kiewiet de Jonge & Carlos Meléndez & David Nickerson & Javier Osorio, 2020. "Carrots and sticks: Experimental evidence of vote-buying and voter intimidation in Guatemala," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 57(1), pages 46-61, January.
    6. Michael Wahman & Edward Goldring, 2020. "Pre-election violence and territorial control: Political dominance and subnational election violence in polarized African electoral systems," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 57(1), pages 93-110, January.

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