<p>This study focuses on the future role and nature of an e-voting system for a future electoral system in South Africa. The study is of the view that rapid technological advancement and opportunities may contribute to efficient and effective e-voting systems. The study will investigate the international experience where initiatives have been undertaken, particularly in countries like the USA, the Netherlands, India, and Nigeria. Lessons born out of experience have been identified to highlight best practice and potential problems to be avoided in our future elections. As an outcome, the study indirectly seeks ways to increase turnout, particularly amongst the youth, increase voting access (everywhere and anytime), cost effectiveness and availability of quick national election results.</p> <p><br /> The primary objective of this study has been to develop future options for the planning and design of an e-voting for South Africa. From the outset of this research, the critical issue was not only about e-voting, but rather the planning and designing of an e-voting system. Suffice it to say that the central issue about e-voting was not whether electronic voting should be developed but how and in what ways it should be designed and planned for successful implementation. Interestingly enough, this question has been bothering the IEC as well, particularly pertaining to planning (see 1.5.3). In a nutshell, it is against this background that experts on elections were interviewed. The research investigation found that many problems still existed in South African elections. This research found that both participation and communication are the main pillars in any policy or project.</p> <p><br /> The study revealed that e-voting would appeal to younger voters and will subsequently boost turnout in SA. In a nutshell, this study found that members of the public and election experts were in favor of telephone voting and SMS, Internet voting, and EVMs. However, it was noted that rural communities would benefit in the long run from e-voting because they are still faced with an infrastructure backlog. Proper planning supported by sound planning principles need to be done to ensure that a e-voting in SA will be made successful and specific recommendations were made in this regard.</p>

This study focuses on the future role and nature of an e-voting system for a future electoral system in South Africa. The study is of the view that rapid technological advancement and opportunities may contribute to efficient and effective e-voting systems. The study will investigate the international experience where initiatives have been undertaken, particularly in countries like the USA, the Netherlands, India, and Nigeria. Lessons born out of experience have been identified to highlight best practice and potential problems to be avoided in our future elections. As an outcome, the study indirectly seeks ways to increase turnout, particularly amongst the youth, increase voting access (everywhere and anytime), cost effectiveness and availability of quick national election results. The primary objective of this study has been to develop future options for the planning and design of an e-voting for South Africa. From the outset of this research, the critical issue was not only about e-voting, but rather the planning and designing of an e-voting system. Suffice it to say that the central issue about e-voting was not whether electronic voting should be developed but how and in what ways it should be designed and planned for successful implementation. Interestingly enough, this question has been bothering the IEC as well, particularly pertaining to planning (see 1.5.3). In a nutshell, it is against this background that experts on elections were interviewed. The research investigation found that many problems still existed in South African elections. This research found that both participation and communication are the main pillars in any policy or project. The study revealed that e-voting would appeal to younger voters and will subsequently boost turnout in SA. In a nutshell, this study found that members of the public and election experts were in favor of telephone voting and SMS, Internet voting, and EVMs. However, it was noted that rural communities would benefit in the long run from e-voting because they are still faced with an infrastructure backlog. Proper planning supported by sound planning principles need to be done to ensure that a e-voting in SA will be made successful and specific recommendations were made in this regard. / Magister Administrationis - MAdmin

<p>This study focuses on the future role and nature of an e-voting system for a future electoral system in South Africa. The study is of the view that rapid technological advancement and opportunities may contribute to efficient and effective e-voting systems. The study will investigate the international experience where initiatives have been undertaken, particularly in countries like the USA, the Netherlands, India, and Nigeria. Lessons born out of experience have been identified to highlight best practice and potential problems to be avoided in our future elections. As an outcome, the study indirectly seeks ways to increase turnout, particularly amongst the youth, increase voting access (everywhere and anytime), cost effectiveness and availability of quick national election results.</p> <p><br /> The primary objective of this study has been to develop future options for the planning and design of an e-voting for South Africa. From the outset of this research, the critical issue was not only about e-voting, but rather the planning and designing of an e-voting system. Suffice it to say that the central issue about e-voting was not whether electronic voting should be developed but how and in what ways it should be designed and planned for successful implementation. Interestingly enough, this question has been bothering the IEC as well, particularly pertaining to planning (see 1.5.3). In a nutshell, it is against this background that experts on elections were interviewed. The research investigation found that many problems still existed in South African elections. This research found that both participation and communication are the main pillars in any policy or project.</p> <p><br /> The study revealed that e-voting would appeal to younger voters and will subsequently boost turnout in SA. In a nutshell, this study found that members of the public and election experts were in favor of telephone voting and SMS, Internet voting, and EVMs. However, it was noted that rural communities would benefit in the long run from e-voting because they are still faced with an infrastructure backlog. Proper planning supported by sound planning principles need to be done to ensure that a e-voting in SA will be made successful and specific recommendations were made in this regard.</p>

Economics is the study of the allocation of resources. Since Arrow's Fundamental Welfare Theorems, we know that competitive-markets achieve Pareto allocations when governments correct market failures. Thus, it has largely been the mission of economists to serve as 'Market Engineers': To identify and quantify market failures so the government can implement Pareto-improving policy (make everyone better without making anyone worse). Do Pareto- improving policies get implemented? How does policy become implemented? Achieving a Pareto efficient allocation of a nation's resources requires studying the implementation of policy, and therefore studying the allocation of political resources that influence policy. Policy implementation begins with the electoral process. In this dissertation, I use auction analysis, econometrics, and game theory to study political resource allocations in the electoral process. This dissertation consists of three research papers: Finance-Augmented Median-Voter Model, Vote Empirics, and Colonel Blotto Strategies. The Finance-Augmented Median-Voter Model postulates that candidates' campaign expenditures are bids in a first-price asymmetric all-pay auction in order to explain campaign expenditure behavior. Vote Empirics empirically analyzes the impacts of campaign expenditures, incumbency status, and district voter registration statistics on observed vote-share results from the 2004 congressional election. Colonel Blotto Strategies postulates that parties' campaign allocations across congressional districts may be a version of the classic Col Blotto game from Game Theory. While some equilibrium strategies and equilibrium payoffs have been identified, this paper completely characterizes players' optimal strategies. In total, this dissertation solves candidates' optimal campaign expenditure strategies when campaign expenditures are bids in an all-pay auction. The analysis demonstrates the need for understanding exactly the impacts of various factors, including strategic expenditures, on final vote results. The research uses econometric techniques to identify the effects. Last, the research derives the complete characterization of Col Blotto strategies. Discussed extensions provide testable predictions for cross-district Party contributions. I present this research not as a final statement to the literature, but in hopes that future research will continue its explanation of political resource allocation. An even greater hope is that in time this literature will be used to identify optimal "policy-influencing policies"; constitutional election policies that provide for the implementation of Pareto-improving government policies. / text

The aim of this essay is to study the electoral process of Rwanda, and whether or not an authoritarian development can be found within the electoral process. This will be achieved through a case study of Rwanda, categorising the changes made in its electoral process since 1991 as either semi - authoritarian or authoritarian. Furthermore, the electoral process is divided into three phases: the pre - existing conditions, the procedure, and final ly the outcome. The theoretical framework consists of theories regarding both semi - authoritarianism and authoritarianism. The study finds that the pre - existing conditions and the outcome have transitioned from being defined as semi - authoritarian to be defi ned as authoritarian, while the procedure remains semi - authoritarian. This illustrates the discrepancy between the different phases of the electoral process, as opposed to them being synchronised. The final analysis concludes that Rwanda’s electoral proces s has become more authoritarian since 1991.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-25T20:23:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Alderico Jose Santos Almeida.pdf: 1416731 bytes, checksum: 22b16d2cf0acd39ca37d5d096f454104 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-05-06 / Through this study, we propose to describe the political and electoral process in a poor state such as Maranhão, highlighting its main political forces and understand how they work, are reproduced and legitimated. However, the core of our research is to examine how the process of modernization and the actual progress of capitalist relations contributed to the evolution of the Colonels to sophisticated forms of political patronage, or the conversion of the vote in a bargaining tool, in which the transaction state is used, most often, as a middleman. Another goal of our work is to understand, too, why do Maranhão unable to develop economically, despite having potential conditions for growth. That is why we propose to also demonstrate the two faces of Maranhão, the first modern, in which each part of "big projects" that promise great results for the state's economy and the second of the delay, the extreme poverty of its population, as the social indicators, which we believe to be the locus for the persistence of political and electoral practices and the reproduction of oligarchic groups. For this work we made use of desk research, consultation with professional literature and field work, to characterize, mainly clientelist practices. We have reached a different result than found in most of the studies on practical electoral politics in the North and Northeast, which deny the exercise of electoral bargaining as a determinant for the politicians to win elections. The persistence of poverty in Maranhao and living conditions of the population, demonstrated by the dismal social indicators seem to explain the maintenance of patronage in the state, although this is not restricted only to people who fall into this situation. The population considered to be "literate" contributes to the consolidation of such practices in an attempt to obtain benefits and privileges / Através do presente estudo, nos propomos a descrever o processo político-eleitoral em um estado pobre como o Maranhão, destacando suas principais forças políticas e compreender como atuam, se reproduzem e se legitimam. Contudo, o cerne da nossa pesquisa está em examinar como o processo de modernização e os próprios avanços das relações capitalistas contribuíram para a evolução do coronelismo para formas sofisticadas de clientelismo político, ou seja, a conversão do voto em um instrumento de barganha, em cuja transação o Estado é utilizado, na maioria das vezes, como elemento intermediário. Outro objetivo do nosso trabalho é compreender, também, a razão do Maranhão não conseguir se desenvolver economicamente, apesar de possuir condições potenciais de crescimento. Daí porque nos propomos ainda demonstrar as duas faces do Maranhão: a primeira moderna, na qual si insere os grandes projetos que prometem ótimos resultados para a economia do estado e a segunda a do atraso , da extrema pobreza da sua população, medida pelos indicadores sociais, que acreditamos ser o lócus para a persistência de práticas político-eleitorais e para a reprodução dos grupos oligárquicos. Para este trabalho fizemos uso da pesquisa documental, consulta à bibliografia especializada e do trabalho de campo, visando à caracterização, principalmente, das práticas clientelistas. Chegamos a um resultado diferente do encontrado em boa parte dos estudos sobre práticas políticas eleitorais no Norte e Nordeste do país, os quais negam o exercício da barganha eleitoral como fator determinante para os políticos vencer as eleições. A persistência da pobreza no Maranhão e as condições de vida da população, demonstrada através dos péssimos indicadores sociais, parecem explicar a manutenção do clientelismo no estado, embora isso não se restrinja apenas às pessoas que se enquadram nessa situação. A população tida como letrada contribui para a consolidação de tais práticas na tentativa de obter vantagens e privilégios

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-26T14:58:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Alderico Jose Santos Almeida.pdf: 1416731 bytes, checksum: 22b16d2cf0acd39ca37d5d096f454104 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-05-06 / Through this study, we propose to describe the political and electoral process in a poor state such as Maranhão, highlighting its main political forces and understand how they work, are reproduced and legitimated. However, the core of our research is to examine how the process of modernization and the actual progress of capitalist relations contributed to the evolution of the Colonels to sophisticated forms of political patronage, or the conversion of the vote in a bargaining tool, in which the transaction state is used, most often, as a middleman. Another goal of our work is to understand, too, why do Maranhão unable to develop economically, despite having potential conditions for growth. That is why we propose to also demonstrate the two faces of Maranhão, the first modern, in which each part of "big projects" that promise great results for the state's economy and the second of the delay, the extreme poverty of its population, as the social indicators, which we believe to be the locus for the persistence of political and electoral practices and the reproduction of oligarchic groups. For this work we made use of desk research, consultation with professional literature and field work, to characterize, mainly clientelist practices. We have reached a different result than found in most of the studies on practical electoral politics in the North and Northeast, which deny the exercise of electoral bargaining as a determinant for the politicians to win elections. The persistence of poverty in Maranhao and living conditions of the population, demonstrated by the dismal social indicators seem to explain the maintenance of patronage in the state, although this is not restricted only to people who fall into this situation. The population considered to be "literate" contributes to the consolidation of such practices in an attempt to obtain benefits and privileges / Através do presente estudo, nos propomos a descrever o processo político-eleitoral em um estado pobre como o Maranhão, destacando suas principais forças políticas e compreender como atuam, se reproduzem e se legitimam. Contudo, o cerne da nossa pesquisa está em examinar como o processo de modernização e os próprios avanços das relações capitalistas contribuíram para a evolução do coronelismo para formas sofisticadas de clientelismo político, ou seja, a conversão do voto em um instrumento de barganha, em cuja transação o Estado é utilizado, na maioria das vezes, como elemento intermediário. Outro objetivo do nosso trabalho é compreender, também, a razão do Maranhão não conseguir se desenvolver economicamente, apesar de possuir condições potenciais de crescimento. Daí porque nos propomos ainda demonstrar as duas faces do Maranhão: a primeira moderna, na qual si insere os grandes projetos que prometem ótimos resultados para a economia do estado e a segunda a do atraso , da extrema pobreza da sua população, medida pelos indicadores sociais, que acreditamos ser o lócus para a persistência de práticas político-eleitorais e para a reprodução dos grupos oligárquicos. Para este trabalho fizemos uso da pesquisa documental, consulta à bibliografia especializada e do trabalho de campo, visando à caracterização, principalmente, das práticas clientelistas. Chegamos a um resultado diferente do encontrado em boa parte dos estudos sobre práticas políticas eleitorais no Norte e Nordeste do país, os quais negam o exercício da barganha eleitoral como fator determinante para os políticos vencer as eleições. A persistência da pobreza no Maranhão e as condições de vida da população, demonstrada através dos péssimos indicadores sociais, parecem explicar a manutenção do clientelismo no estado, embora isso não se restrinja apenas às pessoas que se enquadram nessa situação. A população tida como letrada contribui para a consolidação de tais práticas na tentativa de obter vantagens e privilégios

Contenders disputing electoral results in Sub-Saharan African countries often attribute defects in presidential electoral processes to the implementation of rules and procedures. Yet despite the considerable decision-making authority poll workers are entrusted with and the significance of the tasks performed by therm, scholars have not closely investigated poll workers'contributions to elections' management in Sub-Saharan Africa. Using principal-agent theory as the foundation, the purpose of this case study was to examine the challenges encountered in the organization of the presidential election in Togo, held on April 25, 2015, with a particular emphasis on poll workers' job performance. Research questions focused on whether poll workers in Togo have the ability and the resources necessary to carry out quality elections and the perceived effects of poll workers' performance on the integrity of the presidential electoral process. Data were obtained from interviews with 11 purposely selected poll workers and review of social media audio and video records of the election. These data were inductively coded and subjected to thematic analysis. A key finding was that deficiencies in poll workers' performance reflect a complex interplay of ill-conceived legal framework, lack of infrastructure, poor training, personal ineptitude, underfunding, partisanship, and tribalism. Further findings indicated that poll workers performing poorly resulted in long lines of voters, voter suppression, inaccuracies in vote counts, and delay in results announcement. Implications for positive social change include election practitionners' increased awareness that improving the quality of service delivery to voters on election day may foster confidence in and legitimacy of election results, seen as prerequisite to peaceful presidential elections in this part of the world.

This study investigated the perceptions of election stakeholders with regard to the management of the 2011 electoral processes in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The involvement of civil society organizations, electoral experts and academia, including party agents as domestic observers and stakeholders in Congolese electoral processes, is crucial as they help electoral and participatory democracy to take root in the DRC. This study was underpinned by political trust, political support and neopatrimonial theories. Furthermore, a mixed methods research design was used in order to understand the perceptions of stakeholders on the management of the 2011 electoral processes in the DRC. The findings of the study showed that stakeholders‟ perceptions on the management of the 2011 electoral processes in the DRC were driven by both internal and external factors pertaining to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that have the potential to affect the electoral processes as well as the level of trust in the INEC and other institutions involved in the electoral processes. / Political Sciences / M.A. (Politics)

La résolution de la crise ivoirienne nécessite l’organisation d’une élection présidentielle inclusive. Sur la base de l’Accord de Pretoria, les Nations Unies vont s’impliquer dans la gestion du processus électoral, conformément à la Résolution 1765(2005) du Conseil de sécurité, instituant le mandat de certification.La certification du processus électoral ivoirien constitue dés lors une activité électorale inédite au cœur de la souveraineté nationale. En effet, la gestion du processus électoral par les organes nationaux et un organe international repose sur une architecture juridique hybride, mélangeant le droit national et le droit international, devant permettre la sauvegarde des résultats de l’élection présidentielle. L’acceptation du mécanisme de la certification par les autorités nationales dans ce processus régalien modifie substantiellement la traditionnelle hiérarchie des normes qui attribue à la Constitution et au Conseil constitutionnel une place privilégiée dans les rapports internes et externes.Ainsi, la mise en œuvre du mandat de la certification enlève toute force obligatoire à la décision du Conseil constitutionnel censée revêtir l’autorité de la chose jugée. La déclaration de certification des Nations Unies accorde au candidat proclamé par la Commission électorale indépendante, une légitimité et une crédibilité internationales au détriment du candidat proclamé vainqueur par le Conseil constitutionnel. Cette situation pousse le Conseil constitutionnel ivoirien à se dédire, et reconnaître la supériorité de la certification sur sa décision. / The resolution of the Ivorian crisis requires the holding of an inclusive presidential election. On the basis of the Pretoria Agreement and in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1765 (2005) establishing the certification mandate, the United Nations throughout the Special Representative of the Secretary-General were involved in the electoral process.The certification of the Ivorian electoral process constitutes an unprecedented electoral activity at the heart of national sovereignty. Indeed, the management of the electoral process by national bodies and an international body built on a hybrid legal framework, including national law and international law, to safe-guard the results of the presidential election. The acceptance of the certification’s mechanism by the national authorities in this stately process modifies substantially the traditional hierarchy of the norms which assigns to the Constitution and the Constitutional Council a privileged place in the internal and external reports.Thus, the implementation of the Special Representative’s mandate deprives all binding force from the Constitutional Council’s decision, which is supposed to have the authority of res judicata. The United Nations certification’ statement grants international legitimacy and credibility to the candidate proclaimed by the Independent Electoral Commission to the detriment of the candidate proclaimed victor by the Constitutional Council. This situation urges the Ivorian Constitutional Council to recant, and recognizes the superiority of certification on its decision.