Electoral Violence And Post-Electoral Arrangements In Africa (African Renaissance, Vol 5 Nos 3-4

The end of the Cold War and big power rivalries in the late 1980s coincided with and/or contributed to the restoration or establishment of multiparty systems in most of Africa in what has been termed 'third wave of democratisation'. This saw an opening up of political space and the formation or resurrection of opposition political parties in the region. Almost all the African countries south of the Sahara adopted new constitutions that reflected these developments, including the principle of regular legislative/parliamentary and presidential elections.