Why Lack of Integrity Triggers Electoral Violence

Abstract

This paper seeks to determine whether, and under what conditions, electoral malpractices exacerbate electoral violence.

Unfair, corrupt, or flawed contests are predicted to undermine broader feelings of political legitimacy, thereby triggering popular protests and catalyzing electoral violence in repressive states.

Part I of this paper expands upon the theoretical framework and core propositions. Part II outlines the evidence, derived the NELDA dataset coding all national elections worldwide from 1945-2010. Part III presents the results. The conclusions summarize the key findings and considers their consequences.

Keywords: elections, integrity, fraud, violence, conflict