Land Narratives and the Logic of Electoral Violence in Kenya

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between land and the escalation of electoral violence in Kenya since multiparty elections. It asks two related questions: Why is there such variation in the occurrence of electoral violence across Kenya? Why does violence become a logical strategy for elites and ordinary citizens in one context, but not another? Theories of electoral violence emphasize political liberalization, elite incentives, election fraud, ethnic cleavages, weak institutions and land patronage. Yet few theories can specify the local conditions that enable and constrain the escalation of election-time violence. This paper argues that land narratives provide one of the main mechanisms for elites to organize violent collective action. Land narratives are effective tools of mobilization because they invoke the threat of losing land as well as the opportunity for gaining land or property tied to electoral outcomes. Yet elites will only use land narratives when they resonate with group members. The paper draws on in-depth interviews and survey evidence gathered in the Rift Valley and Coast regions from May 2012-2013. Rather than assuming that elites have the incentive and capacity to use land as a mobilizing tool, the paper uncovers why land provides a compelling reason for ordinary citizens to fight.