Straining without training? Capacity-related problems facing African election executives and officials

This article argues that the empowerment of election officials and executives is usually overlooked, understated or simply ignored; yet elections cannot be conducted without plans in place to improve their efficiency and effectiveness; especially through training. As one of the foremost mechanisms for improving elections, training is crucial to organisational performance enhancement. However, training for election officials and executives is fairly new in many African countries. Generally incorporated in generic university or vocational institute courses globally, training is usually offered as a special tailor-made module for polling officials in western countries. Even then, it rarely covers the severe conditions election officials regularly face, especially in Africa. This article examines these issues based on a review of the extant literature, conceptual and theoretical reflection on election management, and practical interaction with some election authorities who participated as trainees in the Unisa Management of Democratic Elections in Africa (MDEA) course (2012–2014). The article concludes that the training of election officials and executives poses challenges for Africa; partly because some election management bodies (EMBs) prefer to “strain” rather than effectively train their members to ensure sustainable performance, and partly because others prefer short-term irrelevant training that undermines their organisational goals. These hurdles need to be overcome if Africa is to address its election-related challenges.     

近代中国社会地方民主政治实践的历史考察——以民初湖南省地方议员选举为例

民主所具有的普世价值,历来为人们所重视并进而成为整个人类孜孜以求的价值目标。理想的民主政治,不但需要民主的"民"具有"众"的属性,而且需要民众具有丰富的民主政治经验和较高的民主政治素养。然而"民"的范围是随着民众的逐渐觉醒而不断增大的,民众的民主政治经验和素养也不是与生俱来的,需要民众在社会政治实践中不断地参与,持续地积累和提高。民主是理想与经验的统一。     

关于党内开展竞争性选举的思考

开展竞争性选举是党内民主发展的大势所趋,不容回避。在推动党内民主发展过程中,实行竞争性选举是提高党内民主建设科学化水平的关键。     

关于干部制度改革的几个重要问题

我国的干部制度改革已进入攻坚阶段。深化干部制度改革,需要根据干部的特点,将党政干部区分为政务类干部和事务类干部两类。在此基础上,需要积极推进政务类干部的选举,改革创新对事务类干部的选拔。     

关于改进完善党内基层选举制度的调研报告

文章以辽宁省为调研样本,分析总结了当前影响党内基层选举顺利进行现实操作中仍然存在的一些亟待解决的问题,并对贯彻执行党内基层选举制度中存在的深层次问题及其原因进行了深入剖析,在此基础上提出了关于改进完善党内基层选举制度的思考和一整套政策建议。     

The Economic Consequences of a Hung Parliament: Lessons from February 1974

The British general election on 10 May 2010 delivered Britain's first hung Parliament since February 1974, and in the run‐up, the Conservative party made much of the economic difficulties Britain faced in the second half of the 1970s in order to try and convince voters that anything other than a Tory vote would risk exposing the nation to the discipline of financial markets. The question of how well equipped an exceptional kind of British government is to deal with exceptional economic circumstances is therefore of paramount importance. This paper argues that the Conservative party made too much of the impact of the 1974 hung Parliament in precipitating subsequent economic crisis and suggests that as such, there is no reason to assume that the Conservative–Liberal coalition government is ill‐equipped to manage British economic affairs in difficult circumstances.     

乡镇党委领导成员直接差额选举的实践与探索

乡镇党委成员直接差额选举解决了权力与民主脱节和权力来源问题,体现了党管干部和群众公认原则,体现了党内对人民民主的示范和带动作用;同时,有利于扩大群众基础,扩大了选人用人视野;转变了干部监督方式;实现了对上负责和对下负责的统一。目前,乡镇党委成员直接差额选举还处在试点探索阶段,应注意处理好报名资格条件、民主推荐、党管干部原则、因乡镇制宜等问题。     

农村党支部选举中的权力影响因素分析——以山东省东平县T镇D管区为例

目前,在我国农村党支部选举中存在着多种权力影响因素,主要表现为乡村族权的错位干涉、乡村民权的相对缺失以及来自乡镇部分工作人员的主观因素影响。解决农村党支部选举影响权力异化问题,对于避免农村政党民主落后于政治民主、加强党在农村基层组织建设等具有重要意义。其中,重点发挥基层政党民主资源,转变农村部分党组织领导方式,规范民主选举程序,是加强农村党支部选举实践和组织建设的有效途径。     

"公推直选"的效应及思考

“公推直选”的试点使得党内思想、党内矛盾、党的活动方式、干部管理等方面出现新的变化：这是实现政党现代化的必然举措。为了推动“公推直选”深入开展，现阶段，应把“公推直选”的边界定到地方基层领导班子和主要领导；应扎实推动党员代表和群众代表的直选工作；应着重在党员、上级党组织和党外群众三个方面研究配套制度。     

印尼大选透视

印尼 6月 7日大选在公开、公正情况下顺利完成 ,国际社会逐渐对印尼恢复信心。国内政治趋于稳定 ,经济出现好转迹象 ,民众的信心也逐步恢复。大选产生五个大党 ,但没有一个政党占优势 ,组成联合政府势在必行。大选是议席和权力再分配的过程 ,谁当总统 ?梅加瓦蒂和哈比比成为焦点人物 ,这个谜要到 10月才能解开。