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DESCRIPTION:The Moynihan Institute’s Study of Global Politics series presen
ts a book talk with author and Associate Professor of Political Science Ni
cholas Kerr from the University of FloridaBook Abstract:This book explains
why electoral commissions (ECs) have improved election quality and legiti
macy in some African countries but not in others. Kerr argues that ECs pro
vide valuable information that helps politicians and citizens resolve unce
rtainties about electoral fraud and administrative irregularities. Whereas
previous research focuses on the institutional design of ECs\, this book
privileges their actual performance\, emphasizing two attributes: autonomy
and capacity. By serving an informational role\, the autonomy and capacit
y of ECs influence how citizens and elites think about and behave during e
lections. This includes whether political elites and citizens participate
in elections\, engage in electoral fraud and violence\, accept electoral o
utcomes\, and express confidence in elections. These attitudes and behavio
rs\, in turn\, influence whether elections meet democratic standards (elec
tion quality) and whether political elites and citizens regard election pr
ocesses as acceptable (election legitimacy). This book brings together evi
dence from public opinion surveys\, elite surveys\, field research\, and c
ross-national databases to give an unusually rich empirical exploration of
the dynamics of elections and democracy in sub-Saharan Africa since the 1
990s\, including a focused case study of Nigeria.Nicholas N. Kerr is assoc
iate professor of political science at the University of Florida. His rese
arch interests include comparative institutions\, democratization\, electo
ral integrity\, public opinion and African politics. His book\, Electoral
Commissions and Democratization in Africa\, is published with Oxford Unive
rsity Press and he has also published in leading journals\, including Comp
arative Politics\, Governance\, Public Opinion Quarterly\, Political Resea
rch Quarterly\, Political Studies\, Political Psychology\, and Electoral S
tudies. Nicholas has experience conducting fieldwork and organizing elite
and mass surveys in several African countries and has advised numerous pro
minent democracy promotion and political development organizations. He hol
ds a Ph.D. in political science from Michigan State University and a bache
lor of arts in political science and economics from Williams College.
DTEND:20260227T183000Z
DTSTAMP:20260510T135924Z
DTSTART:20260227T170000Z
LOCATION:
SEQUENCE:0
SUMMARY:Electoral Commissions and Democratization in Africa: Everyday Produ
ction of Democratic Legitimacy
UID:RFCALITEM639140039649157860
X-ALT-DESC;FMTTYPE=text/html:The Moynihan Institute’s Study of Global Po
litics series presents a book talk with author and Associate Professor of
Political Science Nicholas Kerr from the University of Florida
Book Abstract:
<
span style="background-color: initial\; font-family: inherit\; font-size:
inherit\; text-align: inherit\; text-transform: inherit\; word-spacing: no
rmal\; caret-color: auto\; white-space: inherit">This book exp
lains why electoral commissions (ECs) have improved election quality and l
egitimacy in some African countries but not in others. Kerr argues that EC
s provide valuable information that helps politicians and citizens resolve
uncertainties about electoral fraud and administrative irregularities. Wh
ereas previous research focuses on the institutional design of ECs\, this
book privileges their actual performance\, emphasizing two attributes: aut
onomy and capacity. By serving an informational role\, the autonomy and ca
pacity of ECs influence how citizens and elites think about and behave dur
ing elections. This includes whether political elites and citizens partici
pate in elections\, engage in electoral fraud and violence\, accept electo
ral outcomes\, and express confidence in elections. These attitudes and be
haviors\, in turn\, influence whether elections meet democratic standards
(election quality) and whether political elites and citizens regard electi
on processes as acceptable (election legitimacy). This book brings togethe
r evidence from public opinion surveys\, elite surveys\, field research\,
and cross-national databases to give an unusually rich empirical explorati
on of the dynamics of elections and democracy in sub-Saharan Africa since
the 1990s\, including a focused case study of Nigeria.
<
strong>Nicholas N. Kerr is associate professor of political scien
ce at the University of Florida. His research interests include comparativ
e institutions\, democratization\, electoral integrity\, public opinion an
d African politics. His book\, Electoral Commissions and Democratizati
on in Africa\, is published with Oxford University Press and he has a
lso published in leading journals\, including Comparative Politics\, Governance\, Public Opinion Quarterly\, Politica
l Research Quarterly\, Political Studies\, Political Psy
chology\, and Electoral Studies.
Nicholas has experie
nce conducting fieldwork and organizing elite and mass surveys in several
African countries and has advised numerous prominent democracy promotion a
nd political development organizations. He holds a Ph.D. in political scie
nce from Michigan State University and a bachelor of arts in political sci
ence and economics from Williams College.