COURSE OUTLINE AND READING LIST: POLI 444 (ELECTORAL POLITICS AND DEMOCRACY IN GHANA)

DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

UNIVERSITY OF GHANA

SECOND SEMESTER, 2013/2014

LECTURERS: MR ALEX K. D. FREMPONG/DR. EMMANUEL DEBRAH

COURSE TITLE	ELECTORAL POLITICS AND DEMOCRACY IN GHANA
COURSE CODE	POLI 444
PURPOSE AND OBJS.	Particularly since the end of the Cold War, democracy and elections have become buzzwords around the globe. Questions however exist as to the nature of democracy and its relationship with elections and democratic consolidation in new democracies in Africa. Ghana since the 1992 ‘founding’ elections has witnessed five other elections and two alternations in power. Even before then, Ghana has had long experience with electoral politics that preceded independence in 1957 and ‘pockets’ of democratic governance in-between military regimes. This course, against the background of the theoretical analysis of democracy, elections and democratic consolidation, examines the dynamics, intricacies and impacts of electoral politics and democratic governance in Ghana and the prospects for the future. The course is intended to broaden and deepen students’ understanding of these issues to prepare them for educating others on electoral politics and democratic governance. Upon completion of this course students should be able to: ·         Understand the theoretical perspectives of election ·         Appreciate the dynamics of elections  in the pre-election era ·         Explain how the politics of the immediate post-independence era influenced elections ·         Discuss the contexts  in which elections and referendum in the Second and Third Republics ·         Analyze various dimension of elections in the Fourth Republic ·         Contribute meaningfully  to discussions on issues of  Electoral Politics in Ghana
WEEK NO	Date	Lecture Course	Tutorials	Venue	Assessment
1-3	10-28Feb  2014	EXPLAINING ELECTIONS: theoretical perspectives	Theory of Elections Role of Elections	Lecture: NNB 2 Tutorial: DLR
4	3-7 Mar 2014	PRE-INDEPENDENCE ELECTIONS: 1951, 1954 and 1956.	The electoral dominance of the CPP	Lecture: NNB 2 Tutorial: DLR
5-6	10- 21Mar 2014	IMMEDIATE POST-INDEPENDENCE ELECTIONS: 1960 referendum and elections; 1964 One-Party Referendum; 1965 No-contest	One-Party Elections	Lecture: NNB 2 Tutorial: DLR
7-8	24 Mar -4 April 2014	POST-INDEPENDENCE MULTIPARTY AND NO-PARTY ELECTIONS: 1969, 1978 union government referendum and 1979 Elections	Contexts, Processes , Outcomes  and Lessons for the Fourth Republic	Lecture: NNB 2 Tutorial: DLR
9-11	7Apr 25 Apr 2014	ELECTIONS IN THE FOURTH REPUBLIC: 1992 Referendum, 1992, 1996, 2004, 2008  & 2012 Elections	Transition elections, Alternation in Power, Presidential Runoff	Lecture: NNB 2 Tutorial: DLR
12-13	28 Apr-9 May 2013	ELECTORAL ISSUES: Ethnicity, Economy,  Incumbency, Electoral Defeat	Implications of Issues for Electoral Politics In Ghana	Lecture: NNB 2 Tutorial: DLR

Reading List

MAIN TEXT:  Alex K. D. Frempong (2012)  Electoral Politics in Ghana’s Fourth Republic in the Context of Post-Cold War Africa, Accra: Yamens Press.   COMPULSORY AND AVAILABLE AT DEPARTMENTAL GENERAL OFFICE

Fred M. Hayward, ed.  Elections in Independent Africa, Boulder & London: Westview Press, Chapters 1, 3 &10

Emmanuel Debrah (2004) ” The Politics of Elections: Opposition and Incumbency in Ghana’s 2000 Elections”,  AFRICA INSIGHT, Vol. 34, Nos. 2/3, June/Sept, pp. 3-16

E. Debrah (2008/2009) ”The Economy and Regime Change in Ghana, 1992-2004, Ghana Social Science Journal, Vols 5/6. Nos 1 &2, pp. 84-113

A. A. Boahen (2000) Ghana: Evolution and Change in the 19^th and 20 Centuries, Accra: Sankofa

Naomi Chazan (1983) Anatomy of Ghanaian Politics: Managing Political Recession in Ghana, Boulder: Westview Press

Dennis Austin and Robin Luckham eds. (1975) Politicians and Soldiers in Ghana, London: Frank Cass, pp. 140-163.

Maxwell Owusu (1979) “Politics without Parties: Reflections on the Union Government Proposals in Ghana”, African Studies Review, Vol. 22, No.1 (April), pp. 89-108.

Richard Jeffries (1980) “The Ghanaian Elections of 1979”, African Affairs, Vol. 79, No. 316, July, pp. 397-414.

B. Agyeman-Duah (2005) Elections and Electoral Politics in Ghana’s Fourth Republic, Critical Perspectives No. 18, Accra: Ghana Center for Democratic Development, CDD-Ghana.

Jeffries (1993) “The Ghana Elections of 1992”, African Affairs, Vol. 92, No. 368, July, pp.331-366.

Mike Oquaye (1995) “The Ghanaian Elections of 1992: A Dissenting View”, African Affairs, Vol. 94, No. 375: 259-275.

J. R. A. Ayee (1997) Ghana’s 1996 General Elections: A Post-mortem, Harare: AAPS Occasional Paper Series, Vol.1, No.1.

J. R. A. Ayee ed. (1998) The 1996 General Elections and Democratic Consolidation in Ghana, Accra: Gold Type Ltd.

E. Gyimah-Boadi (1997) “Ghana’s Encouraging Elections: The Challenges Ahead”, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 8, No. 2, April, pp. 78-91.

Gyimah-Boadi (1999)” Ghana: The Challenges of Consolidating Democracy”, in Richard Joseph ed. State, Conflict, and Democracy in Africa, Boulder/London: Lynne Rienner, pp. 409-427.

Jeffries (1998) “The Ghanaian Elections of 1996: Towards the Consolidation of Democracy”, African Affairs, Vol. 97, No. 387, April, pp. 189-208.

 Ayee ed. (2001), Deepening Democracy in Ghana: Politics of the 2000 Elections, Accra: Freedom Publications, Vol. 1.

Gyimah-Boadi (2001) “A Peaceful Turnover in Ghana”, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 103-117.

K. Boafo-Arthur (2006) “The 2004 General Elections”, Voting for Democracy in Ghana: The 2004 Elections in Perspective, Vol.1, Accra: Freedom Publications, pp. 33-58.

Gyimah-Boadi (2009) “Another Step Forward for Ghana”, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 20, No. 2, April, pp. 138-152.

Michael Amoah (2009) “The Most Difficult Decision Yet: Ghana’s 2008 Presidential Elections”, African Journal of Political Science and International Relations, Vol. 3(4), April, pp. 174-181.

H. Jockers, D. Kohnert and P. Nugent (2009) “The Successful Ghana Election of 2008: A Convenient Myth? Ethnicity in Ghana’s Elections Revisited”, Munich Personal RePEc Archive MPRA) Paper No. 16167.