This volume conceptualizes the dynamics underlying electoral politics in ethnically divided societies, providing empirical evidence and analysis of recent elections in such societies on a comparative and single-case basis, including case studies of Macedonia, Slovakia, Belgium, Malaysia, Singapore, Rwanda, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago. Free and fair elections are one of the most fundamental characteristics of democratic systems. In ethnically divided societies, elections and the rules and regulations on which they are based assume special importance because they provide important levers to guarantee, or prevent, adequate representation of different communal groups in the key institutions of the state. Hence not only are elections contested vigorously, but also the electoral systems according to which they are conducted. This book was previously published as a special issue of Ethnopolitics.

This book asks what distinguishes peaceful plural democracies from violent ones and what distinguishes violent ethnic groups from peaceful ones within the same democracy. Contrary to conventional wisdom, it suggests that ethnic groups and their political demands are not inherently intransigent and that violence is not a necessary corollary of ethnic politics. The book posits that ethnic identity serves as a stable but flexible information shortcut for political choices, influencing party formation and development in new and maturing democracies. It furthermore argues that political intransigence and violence expressed by some ethnic groups stem from circumstances exogenous to ethnic affiliations. In particular, absolute restrictions on ethnic access to the executive produce conditions under which ethnic group incentive to participate in peaceful electoral politics is eliminated. A number of case studies and statistical analysis of all electoral democracies since 1945 are used to test and support the formal argument.

Woodrow Wilson Center Press.

Applying a framework derived from comparative politics and IR theory, the authors of this text explore two sets of empirical cases: the emergence of new nationalisms in old European democracies and the re-emergence of old nationalisms in several new democracies.

Ethiopia is the darling of development economists: since 2005, the country’s economic growth rate has consistently been over the 10% mark. Ethiopia is also a regional superpower with political influence across East Africa and the Horn. Furthermore, the African Union has its headquarters in the capital Addis Ababa, which further underscores the country’s growing international profile. On top of everything, since 1995 Ethiopia has a federal constitution explicitly committed to granting political autonomy to all ethnic groups within the country. Ethiopia’s federalism has also direct relevance to the country’s neighbours, Eritrea, Somalia, Kenya, South Sudan, and Djibouti who have ethnic kin across the borders with Ethiopia. Yet, despite the generous promises to the country’s ethnic groups stated in the constitution, not everything is well. As marked by the recent unrest throughout various regions of the country, the federal constitution’s promises and the reality do not always perfectly align. But there is a shortage of even-handed scholarly analyses of this complex country, and in particular, its unique federal system. Based on chapters focusing on different parts of the federal system, the collection takes stock of the last 20 years and distils lessons and insights for a broader international/comparative readership. The chapters originally published in Ethnopolitics and Regional & Federal Studies.

Despite dramatic improvements in the security environment in most parts of Iraq, still unresolved are many core political issues, foremost of which is the conflict over the city and region of Kirkuk. With immense oil reserves and a diverse population of Kurds, Arabs, and Turkmens, Kirkuk in recent history has been scarred by interethnic violence and state-sponsored ethnic cleansing. Throughout the twentieth century, successive Arab Iraqi governments engaged in a brutal campaign to increase Kirkuk's Arab population at the expense of Kurds and Turkmens. Following the invasion of Iraq in 2003, a newly empowered Kurdish leadership has sought to reverse the effects of the Arabization campaign and to hold a referendum on incorporating Kirkuk into the Kurdistan Region. The Kurds' efforts are, however, strongly opposed by Kirkuk's Turkmens, Arabs, and also most states in the region. In Crisis in Kirkuk, Liam Anderson and Gareth Stansfield offer a dispassionate analysis of one of Iraq's most pressing and unresolved problems. Drawing on extensive research and fieldwork, the authors investigate the claims to ownership made by each of Kirkuk's competing communities. They consider the constitutional mechanisms put in place to address the issue and the problems that have plagued their implementation. The book concludes with an assessment of the measures needed to resolve the crisis in Kirkuk, stressing that finding a compromise acceptable to all sides is vital to the future stability of Iraq.