Data Set Elections and Democracy in Africa , (with data on selected elections ). Staffan I. Lindberg

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1 Data Set Elections and Democracy in Africa , (with data on selected elections ). Staffan I. Lindberg Assistant Professor Department of Political Science & Center for African Studies University of Florida 234 Anderson Hall P.O. Box Gainesville, FL, Homepage: The full documentation with the factual basis for assignment of values for each country and every variable (48 country-files with full references to every source used to validate each value, appr. 500 pages), may be obtained upon request from the author. You may freely download and use the dataset on the condition that the investigator is notified if and when you use it for any kind of publication. Thank you. This database was used for the following publications by the investigator: 2006a. Democracy and Elections in Africa. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. 2006b. The Surprising Significance of African Elections. Journal of Democracy 17(1): c. Better Turn the Other Cheek: The Effects of Opposition Behavior on Democratization. Journal of Contemporary African Politics 24(1): c The Power of Elections: Democratic Participation, Competition, and Legitimacy in Africa. PhD diss. Lund Political Studies 134. Lund University: Department of Political Science. An earlier version covering elections was used for the following publications: Consequences of Electoral Systems in Africa: A Preliminary Inquiry. Electoral Studies 24(1): a. Democratization and Women s Empowerment: The Effects of Electoral Systems, Participation and Repetition in Africa. Studies in Comparative International Development Vol. 39(1): b. The Democratic Qualities of Multiparty Elections: Participation, Competition and Legitimacy in Africa. Journal of Commonwealth and Comparative Politics 42(1):

2 Name Variables and Coding Rules Position COUNTRY Name of the Country 1 PRE_PAR Presidential or Parliamentary system (constitutional type) 2 0 Presidential 1 Parliamentary DATE Date of the election 3 In cases of two rounds, it gives the date of the first round. TYPE Type of poll: presidential or parliamentary 4 0 Presidential 1 Parliamentary NO Current election's number 5 The sequential number of the election in terms of an uninterrupted (by breakdown) series of elections within the category of presidential or parliamentary elections. NO_CATE No of the current poll in a sequence: 4,5,6,7 etc are grouped as 4+ 6 YEAR The year of the election 7 YEAR2 Year of the election: dates before 1990 grouped as YEAR_CAT Group variable: 9 0 Pre YECAT3B Period: 3 periods YECAT4 Period: 4 periods IDEA_TO Turnout as % of Voting Aged Population (IDEA) 12 TURNOUT Percent turnout divided with 100=value 13 As a measure, the share of registered voters is used in preference to share of voting age population since such figures tend to be highly unreliable in Africa. In a few cases where official figures are obviously inflated, for example, the official turnout at Mauritania's presidential election December 12, 1997, observers reported estimates are used as proxies. The percentage of registered voters participating in the election is expressed as decimals on a scale from 0 to 1.

3 INCUMB Did past authoritarian leader(s) participate in the election? 14 This variable has three values: 0 Yes for elections in which a former authoritarian ruler is participating (presidential elections), or the leadership of one of the parties are made up of former high officials from an authoritarian regime (parliamentary elections), 1 No, but party/previous ministers is assigned to elections in which no former authoritarian ruler participates but one of the candidates has served as a minister/deputy or on a council or similar, in an authoritarian regime (presidential elections), or the same is true for one of the parties contesting (parliamentary elections). 2 No, old guard gone is assigned to elections where none of the main contestants have been in top positions in previous authoritarian regimes. 0 yes 1 no, but the party or previous ministers etc. 2 no, the old guard is gone OPPAR Did the real opposition participate in the election? 15 This indicator measures the enforcement of the right to form political organizations and for their representatives to run for office. The indicator records primarily the pre-election period but also extends over election-day itself. We assign the values for this indicator as follows: 0 No when the real opposition does not take part; 1 Some if some but not all parties contest the elections; and 2 Yes, all if all the major opposition parties compete for the votes. 0 no 1 some but not all of the main players 2 yes VIOLENCE Did election campign/day violence occur? 16 The measure of violence has three values: 0 Yes for elections where the run-up and/or election-day are marred by organized and wide-spread politically motivated violence and threats of violence to the effect of general intimidation and abstention. 1 Isolated events for cases when politically motivated violence occur but is not organized and/or widespread, and 2 No, peaceful for peaceful electoral campaigns and election days. Value Label 0 yes to a significant extent 1 isolated incidents 2 no, peaceful LOOSERS Did the loosers accept the results? 17 Losers acceptance of results has three values: 0 No when none of the main losing parties accepted the outcome, 1 Not at first/some when either some or all losing parties rejected the results at first but within three months accepted it, or, if some losing parties did not accept the results, and 2 Yes, immediately when all losing parties conceded defeat immediately after the results were pronounced. 0 no; none of the main players 1 not at first but later OR some but not all 2 yes; all main players immediately

4 T_OVER Did the elections result in a turnover of power? 18 Turnover of power has three values: 0 No for elections that do not result in an alternation in executive power or shift in majority in parliament, 1 Half for elections which result in any of three scenarios: A) the new person is an immediate successor to the old president for the same party, B) the new president is representing a new party but has served as a minister or similar in the old presidents regime, or C) there is a new coalition-majority in parliament in which some parties are new but some remain from a previous coalition, and 2 Yes for cases where the elected president is new (as different from 1 ) and from another party than the incumbent, or, a new party/coalition of parties seize the majority of seats in parliament. 0 no 1 half:new party or person 2 yes F_F Were the elections essentially judged free and fair? 19 It captures whether electoral procedures were followed, whether people could join a political organization of their choice, whether demonstrations were allowed, and information freely available. We have a four-point scale for this indicator: 0 No when no elections have been held or those held have been wholly unfair; 1 Irregular when there were serious defects that influenced the results; 2 Yes, irregularities not significant when there were deficiencies but they did not affect the result; and 3 Yes when elections were free and fair. 0 no, not at all 1 somewhat, but irregularities affected the results 2 yes, irregularities not significant for result 3 yes, entirely F_F_CATE Free and Fair in 3 groups: substantially and totally free grouped together 20 0 Not Free 1 Irregular 2 Substantially free F_F2GR Free and Fair in 2groups: non-free and free Not free 1 Free WIN_P Support for winning candidate/ largest party 22 This variable taps the level of competition: in presidential elections the (eventually) winning candidate s percentage of votes from the first round (rather than from the run-off); in parliamentary elections, the largest party s share of seats in the legislature (lower house if applicable). WIN2ND_P Strength of Runner-up 23 In presidential elections the (eventually) runner-up candidate s percentage of votes from the first round (rather than from the run-off); in parliamentary elections, the 2 nd largest party s share of seats in the legislature (lower house if applicable). ELECS5 Parliamentary Electoral System; 5 categories 24 1 Plurality in SMC/MMC 2 Majority in SMC/MMC 3 Mixed SMC&PR 4 PR in small MMC 5 PR in large MMC or pure

5 ELECTS4 Parliamentary Electoral system; 4 categories Plurality in SMC/MMC 2 Majority in SMC/MMC 3 Mixed SMC&PR 4 PR ELECTS3 Parliamentary Electoral system; 3 categories 26 0 Plur/Maj 1 Mixed 2 PR CAND_PAR Total number of presidential candidates OR parties contesting (running) 27 BOY_PAR Number of parties boycotting the election 28 TOT_PAR Total number of parties 'around'. 29 The sum of number of parties contesting and boycotting P_PARLM Absolute number of parties after the elections in parliament. 30 REDEFF Reductive effect in absolute numbers (number of parties contesting minus parties in legislature) 31 REDUCT_P Reductive Effect: %of total parties contesting not gaining seats in legislature 32 INT_OBSV Did international observers monitor the elections? 33 0 no 1 yes FE_MPS Share (%) of Female MPs in legislature (single/lower chamber) 34 FE_MP_GM Female MPs in legislature, percent 35 Values of 0% changed to 1% for calculation of geometric means CRA_ALL Crash-variable but with all cases included (cf. variable 39) 36 0 Yes, civil war 1 Yes, coup 2 Yes, other reasons 3 No crash CRALL2GR Crash-all variable in 2 categories 37 0 Yes, crash 1 No crash SURVREG Did the electoral regime survive as of June 2003? 38 0 No 1 Yes

6 CRASH Electoral process broken down 39 Outright coups, or civil wars following elections are taken as proof that the cycle of holding regular elections have broken down. 0 Yes, civil war 1 yes, coup 2 yes, other reasons CRASHDAT Date of closure of electoral process. 40 CL_E_A Freedom House Civil Liberties (Election year -4 years for founding elections, t(+1) for other) 41 CL_E_1 Freedom House Civil Liberties (Election year -1year) 42 CL_E_B Freedom House Civil Liberties (Election year -2 or adjusted according to appendix 3 43 in Lindberg, Staffan I Democracy and Elections in Africa. CL_E0 Freedom House Civil Liberties (Election year) 44 CL_E1 Freedom House Civil Liberties (Election year +1) 45 CL_E2 Freedom House Civil Liberties (Election year +2) 46 CL_A_B Change in Civil Liberties: NOT ELECTION EFFECT 47 CL_B_0 Change Civil Liberties: ELECTION EFFECT (t-2 to t) 48 CLAB_3C Change in Civil Liberties; NOT ELECTION EFFECT (3 categories no effect in the non-election period 1 +-positive effects in the non-election period -1 --negative effects in the non-election period CLB0_3C Change in Civil Liberties: ELECTION EFFECT (3 categories) no effect in the election period 1 +-positive effects in the election period -1 --negative effects in the election period FH_PR Freedom House Political Rights ranking, same year as election 51 FH_FREE Freedom House Free/Partly/Not Free, same year as election 52 0 Not Free 1 Partly Free 2 Free

7 PR_E_2 Freedom House Political rights (Election year -2) 53 PR_E_1 Freedom House Political rights (Election year -1) 54 PRE_E0 Freedom House Political rights (Election year) 55 PR_E1 Freedom House Political rights (Election year +1) 56 PR_E2 Freedom House Political rights (Election year +2) 57 *These variables were used to assess the impact of elections on civil liberties in Lindberg, Staffan I. Democracy and Elections in Africa, (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins, 2006), see p on the operationalization and use of variable 41 to 50 above. NOTE ON SOURCES: I include elections before 1989 for those countries that had some degree of polyarchy and multiparty elections before that year. Academic Sources: Africa South of Sahara 2003; Badu and Larvie, 1996; Baker 2002; Bratton and van de Walle 1996; Bratton 1998; Burnell 2001; Clark and Gardiner 1997; Derbyshire and Derbyshire 1996; Di Lorenzon and Sborgi 2001; Galvan 2001; Lodge 2002; May and Massey 2001; Nohlen et al. 1999; Olukoshi ed. 1998; Smith 2001; Uwechue ed Agencies and Reports: Adam Carr s Election Archive, Agora Election Data; AllAfrica.com various dates; BBC News Online; various dates; BBC World News; various dates. CNN Election Watch, various dates; Daily Graphic; Freedom House Country Reports, various countries, Elections Around the World; Election Watch, 1-13 (Journal of Democracy); Electionsworld.org; IFES Elections Statistics; Independent Election Commission; various countries; IPU Chronicle of Parliamentary Elections, 25-33; IPU Parline; International IDEA, News and Voter turnout Project; Keesing s Record of World Events; Mampilly mimeo, 2001; News from Nordic Africa Institute, various issues; NDI Elections Observation Reports, various issues; Pan African News Agency various dates; The East African Standard, various dates; UN IRIN News Reports; US Department of State Background Notes, various countries and issues.