How the West was Won
Regional Politics and Prophetic Promises in the 2007 Kenya Elections
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2182144 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Julie Macarthur (0000-0002-9782-5070, University of Cambridge, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2008 |
| Volume | 2 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 227-241 |
| Publication date | 2008-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Eastern African Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1753-1055 • E-ISSN: 1753-1063 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/17531050802058344 |
| OpenAlex | W2068661788 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 14 |
| References cited | 28 |
In the 2007 Kenya elections, the violent clashes and allegations of electoral fraud that engulfed the country served to overshadow, and thus mask, the underlying causes of the opposition and disillusionment that had produced such a closely contested presidential election. The success of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) in challenging the incumbent government, despite the outcome, rested in its ability to mobilise support across regional and ethnic lines throughout the country. This paper demonstrates how ODM mobilised coalition strategies, regional arguments and historical justifications to court a particular regional vote, the Luyia of the Western Province. As the second largest ethnic group in Kenya, the Luyia have, in every election since independence, represented a crucial battleground in the hunt for votes, as a large yet unwieldy and unpredictable voting bloc. However, the opposition's strength, and indeed the post-election chaos, cannot be explained simply by reference to political tribalism or inter-ethnic conflict alone. Rather, this case study reveals the ways in which ODM used promises of succession, power-sharing and regional devolution of authority and resources to create a broad-based, multi-ethnic coalition
Democracy · Ethnic group · General election · Opposition (politics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Presidential system · Sociology · Tribalism · Voting · African history and culture analysis · African history and culture studies · Global Maritime and Colonial Histories · Law
Kenya’s Four Ages of Ethnicity
Belonging and recognition after the post-election violence
The Wars of Who Belongs Where
The Kenyas we don't want’
Poll poison’
Explaining the (local) ethnic census
The Ethnic Logic of Campaign Strategy in Diverse Societies
Deepening or Diminishing Ethnic Divides? The Impact of Urban Migration in Kenya
Ethnicity and the Swing Vote in Africa’s Emerging Democracies
Violent place-making
Before there is power, there is the country
Economic signals of ethnicity and voting in Africa
When did the Luyia (or any other group) become a tribe
Prosecuting a Prophet
Multi-party Politics in Kenya (Eastern African Studies)
Moral & Political Argument in Kenya
Lofty Visions and Militant Action
Population Growth, Environmental Degradation, and State-Sponsored Violence
Population Growth, Environmental Degradation, and State-Sponsored Violence
Yours in Struggle for Majimbo’. Nationalism and the Party Politics of Decolonization in Kenya, 1955-64
Connexions between ‘Primary Resistance’ Movements and Modern Mass Nationalism In East and Central Africa. Part I
The Psychology of Rebellion
Rural Rebels
Ethnicity, Patronage and the African State
The Gold Boom of the 1930s in Eastern Africa
Decolonization and Independence in Kenya 1940-1993
Introduction
Protest and Power in Black Africa
Revealing Prophets
The Kenya General Election of 1963
Women of Fire and Spirit
African Political Systems
A Place to Feel at Home
KAU's cultures
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Press
Dini ya Msambwa
| Unique citing works | 14 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,82 |
| Citation span | 2009 - 2022 (14) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 14 |