This thesis identifies and examines factors that shape voters' choice in Maxixe district in
order to understand how voters decide in general in Mozambique. It is a case study of Maxixe
district, one of the fourteen districts of Inhambane Province in southern Mozambique, which
is historically a stronghold for the ruling Frelimo party. It is an interesting region for study
because it is an economic hub and a cosmopolitan town, with a multi-ethnic population
comprising three ethnolinguistic groups, yet at times it has been assumed to be a
homogeneous region. As such, one cannot rush to conclude that ethnicity plays a major role
in politics and voting behaviour. Yet no studies on voting behaviour have been conducted in
this region. The study is based on four theoretical frameworks commonly used in election
studies, namely the sociological, socio-psychological, rational choice and the cognitive
awareness approaches. Methodologically, it prioritises the social constructivism paradigm,
case study research design and qualitative research approach. Findings confirm that ethnicity
does not determine party choice or voting behaviour in Maxixe. Age forms an important
cleavage among voters as the elderly always vote for Frelimo while younger voters are more
independent. Party identification influences voting choice to some extent, but mainly for
strategic purposes. While the economy determines voting behaviour to some extent, voters do
not use their dissatisfaction to punish the incumbent ruling party and political sophistication
does not influence voting. / Thesis (DPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Political Sciences / DPhil / Unrestricted
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:up/oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/60389 |
| Date | January 2017 |
| Creators | Matsimbe, Zef Alberto |
| Contributors | Schoeman, Maxi, matsimbe71@yahoo.co.uk |
| Publisher | University of Pretoria |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | © 2017 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. |
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