The Ballot Box Illusion: How Authoritarians Repackaged the African Ballot By Nwabueze Chibuzor and Mighulo Masaka Copyright © 2026 IPS-Inter Press Service.

https://www.ipsnews.net/2026/04/the-ballot-box-illusion-how-authoritarians-repackaged-the-african-ballot/?utm_source=email_marketing&utm_admin=146128&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Gaza_Crisis_Deepens_as_Aid_Restrictions_and_Ongoing_Strikes_Strain_Humanitarian_Operations_Inside_th ABUJA, Nigeria / NAIROBI, Kenya, Apr 22 2026 (IPS) - In many countries across Africa, people have recently lined up to vote. But in country after country, there has been no real choice on offer. As CIVICUS’s 2026 State of Civil Society Report documents, what has frequently been on display is a procedural ceremony of democracy, orderly enough to satisfy observers, but hollow enough to leave those who hold the reins of power untroubled. Laws and structures that were supposed to promote democratic decisions have been manipulated into compliance checks, ticking all procedural requirements while lacking democratic substance. In too many cases, the ballot box has become a public relations exercise. Copyright © 2026 IPS-Inter Press Service.