AFRICAN DEMOCRACY AND THE CHALLENGES OF ELECTORAL OBSERVATION AND AU GOAL OF SILENCING THE GUNS

Abstract

Democratic governance,at its core, impliesthe fundamental principle offree, fair,and credible elections,a universally upheld principle as a cornerstone of legitimate political authority. In this respect, the deployment of international election observers is turning into one of the key drivers for improving the integrity of elections in Africa. However, electoral disputes and transitional crises often relegate observers’ recommendations for a stable democratic process, and issues escalate into violence, eroding public confidence in electoral outcomes. Elections in several African states such as Nigeria and Zimbabwe have historically provoked ethnic tensions and bloodshed rather than acting as a force for peace, political stability and economic success. Electoral violence is a major source of democratic instability with palpable threats of deconsolidation and regional instability. Thus, there is a lack of sufficient research on the electoral recommendations from observers in African elections in juxtaposition to the implementation of these recommendations as reforms for electoral violence have spiked since the 21st century. This research attempts to unravel the challenges of the electoral observation process in Africa and seek to develop strategies for the African Union in addressing electoral violence within the AU mandate of silencing the guns in pursuit of its Agenda 2063 centenary goals through a diplomatic mechanism for conflict resolution. The main aim of this research is to recommend strategies to enhance multilateral frameworks to adopt the recommendations of Africa’s election observers for the promotion of democracy.