Mitigating Election Violence and Intimidation: A Political Stakeholder Engagement Approach

Abstract

Most studies of election violence focus on post election violence in the general populace during and after elections. Yet political parties and candidates are key stakeholders in the election process. They compete for public office using campaigns through party‐based platforms to convince electorates for their votes. Parties and candidates can thus potentially be destructive in the election process in the run‐up to elections, as well as on election day and afterward. Drawing on stakeholder theory and the stakeholder engagement literature used frequently in business management, this article develops a political stakeholder engagement framework to create, communicate, deliver, and exchange sustainable strategies to political stakeholders to mitigate election violence and intimidation. The study outlines a definition of the process of political stakeholder engagement, and applies the developed framework to the fiercely contested U.S. 2016 presidential election campaign. The analysis and lessons from the U.S. case suggest the importance of the political stakeholder engagement process as an integral part of sustainable election governance. Related Articles Related Media ABC News. . “Nevada Democratic Convention Chaos Raises Security Concerns.” May 18. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HE3oyNhKH0 We Are Change. . “Violent Arrests and Injuries at the RNC during Flag Burning.” July 20. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8PYoU85ugo AP Archive. . “USA: Violent Clashes at Republican National Convention.” July 21. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKfWq_-yPbc&t=71s

Revisiting Electoral Violence in Zimbabwe: Problems and Prospects

“…However, we can draw conclusions from how scholars have defined the concept over the years. This study reviewed several works which were influential in the development of this concept (Fischer, 2002;Wilkinson, 2004;Straus &, Taylor, 2012;Birch & Muchlinski, 2017;Akwei, 2018). It is from these typical definitions that I decided to conceptualise electoral violence to capture the meaning relevant to this study.…”

“…The researchers were interested actors who are identified as or potential perpetrators of electoral violence by the previous framework. Political stakeholder engagement theory is propelled by the work of (Jeffree, 2009;Akwei, 2018), which focused on key stakeholders such as political parties and candidates in developing policies to avert violence and intimidation. Although, Akwei's study limited her analysis to key players, the political parties and candidates, in this study we do believe stakeholders may extend beyond the stated in some context.…”

“…To interpret the stages shown in Figure 1, stage one, the political parties should deliberate on critical issues in regard to the prevention of electoral violence. Akwei (2018) notes that issues should not be limited to vote buying, fraud via excessing corrupt behaviour, hate speech or defamation of character. The second stage, is about understanding the actors involved, taking in consideration the interest and influence of different stakeholders.…”

Electoral Management in Africa: A Facade or Reality-The Case of Election Dispute Resolution Mechanism

“…These stakeholders are directly affected by the activities, policies and practices of the EMB. Stakeholder engagement process is an integral part of sustainable election governance (Akwei, 2018). Most studies on electoral violence tend to focus on during election and post-election activities.…”

“…This calls for building effective long-term alliance and collaboration between election management bodies, civil society and political parties. Studies show that facilitating long-term inter-community dialogue may be better put in the hands of civil society actors that do not face accusations of being affiliated with any political party (Akwei, 2018;Mapuva, 2013;Taylor, 2018). This is where there seem to be differences between the Malawian Multiparty Liaison Committees and the Kenyan National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) and the Multi-Sectoral Forum (MSF).…”