Chiefs and Pre-Election Violence in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Precolonial Legacy of Centralized States

Xiran Chen

International Interactions, 2024, vol. 50, issue 3, 537-566

Abstract: This article examines how African chiefs shape pre-election violence (PEV) locally. I argue that chiefs with greater capability of voter coordination, which stems from precolonial centralized states, reduce local risk of PEV. Utilizing existing and original data, I find that precolonial centralized states have a negative effect on PEV in Anglophone Africa, where precolonial institutions have been better preserved. This relationship is robust to a series of tests, including two-stage least-squares regressions. The findings contribute to our knowledge of how local political actors shape violent campaign strategies and of the diverse (pre-)colonial legacies in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1080/03050629.2024.2347214

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