Fit to Govern? A Comparative Analysis of the Suitability of South Africa’s Current Proportional Representation Electoral System versus the Majority System. Thembelani Mazibuko 2145-8129-5 Dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Sciences in Political Science at the School of Social Sciences. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg Campus November 2017 i Declaration I, Thembelani Sabelo Mahluli Mazibuko, declare that this dissertation – Fit to Govern? A Comparative Analysis of the Suitability of South Africa’s Current Proportional Representation Electoral System Verses the Majority System – is my own work and that all sources that I have used or quoted have been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete references. Signature: ……………………………………… Date: ……………………………………… ii Abstract The debate around the type of electoral system that South Africa should use has been ongoing for some time. The debate started during the Congress for a Democratic South Africa negotiations. While the negotiations resulted in South Africa settling on the list proportional representation system, the debate around which electoral system South Africa should use continues. This particular research evaluates two particular types of electoral systems. The first type is the first-pass-the-post majority system, where politicians are elected directly by voters, and the second type is the current list proportional representation system, in which voters vote for a political party which then deploys the politicians into elected office. More particularly, the research asks which of the two electoral systems is better equipped for the purposes of running South Africa’s elections given the normative goals of advancing accountability, ensuring a diverse and representative set of elected representatives and mitigating against the influence of private money on the political system. The research utilized the behavioural approach in order to study the research question. The researcher used comparative method as a methodology in order to compare and contrast the two systems from the perspective of different countries. This research differs from other research in that the researcher locates the research question within the values and ideals contained in South Africa’s own constitution. It is found that it is the proportional representation system that achieves the aforementioned normative goals of advancing accountability, ensuring a diverse and representative set of elected representatives and mitigating against the influence of private money. Furthermore, the research found that the idea that the majority system is more accountable is not borne out in objective fact. It is found that it is the proportional representation system that yields a more representative and diverse set of elected representatives whereas the majority system tends to favour incumbency – of both the political party and the politicians. The research also finds that, under the proportional representation system, politicians are less likely to be dependent on soliciting money for their political survival and therefore that the proportional representation system provides an effective bulwark against the proliferation of money in politics. In light of the above findings, the research found that it is the proportional representation system which creates a political culture that is in line with the values contained in the Constitution. The value of the study is that it debunks myths about the “effectiveness” of the majority system while simultaneously shining a light on the underappreciated virtues of the current proportional representation system. The study also sounds a warning bell about the influence of money in contemporary democracies. iii Acknowledgements I would like to thank my mother, Nomangwe Azalea Mazibuko, for all of the sacrifices that she has made in order for me to be in this position. You worked yourself to the bone in order for me to succeed, I will forever be grateful. Thank you for the emotional and financial support. I would also like to thank my sisters Sihle and Zinhle as well as my big brother Ndumiso for their support. I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Dr Sakhile Hadebe as well as to the University of KwaZulu-Natal, may this university continue growing from strength to strength. I would also like to thank Professor Steven Friedman from the University of Johannesburg for his advice as well as for sharing his own research with me, much of which is used in this work. I would also like to thank Professor Andrew Reynolds from the University of North Carolina for his encouragement and advice, your research has been a guiding light for me. This research is dedicated to the memory of my father, Ndumiso Ndlovu, who passed away a month before the submission of this project. iv Table of Contents Declaration ............................................................................................................................................. ii Abstract ................................................................................................................................................. iii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................... v List of Graphics ...................................................................................................................................... vii List of Tables ......................................................................................................................................... viii Acronyms ................................................................................................................................................ ix Definitions and Points of Clarity ............................................................................................................. xii Chapter 1: Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background and Context ................................................................................................................ 2 1.1.1 Background and Context: Past Debates on the Electoral System ........................................... 3 1.1 Assumptions................................................................................................................................... 6 1.2 Gap in the Literature ...................................................................................................................... 7 1.3 Problem Statement ........................................................................................................................ 7 1.4 Research Questions ........................................................................................................................ 8 1.5 Objectives ...................................................................................................................................... 8 1.6 Chapter Outline .............................................................................................................................. 9 1.7 Theoretical Framework and Methodology ..................................................................................... 9 1.7.1 Principle Theory ...................................................................................................................... 9 1.7.2 Methodology ........................................................................................................................ 10 1.8 Proportional Representation and Majority System Explained ....................................................... 13 1.8.1 Proportional Representation Explained ................................................................................. 13 1.8.2 The First-Pass-The-Post Majority System Explained ............................................................... 15 Chapter 2: Literature Review ................................................................................................................. 17 2.1 The Importance of Electoral Systems ........................................................................................... 17 2.2 Criteria for Electoral Systems ....................................................................................................... 19 2.3 Different Types of Electoral Systems ............................................................................................ 22 2.4 Issues in Electoral System choice ................................................................................................. 26 2.4.1 Representation, Diversity and Proportionality ..................................................................... 26 2.4.2 Accountability, Legitimacy and Public Trust in Parliament ................................................... 27 2.4.3 Political Extremism ............................................................................................................... 30 2.4.4 Peripheral issues between PR and MS .................................................................................. 32 Chapter 3: Electoral Systems and “Accountability” ................................................................................ 36 v 3.1 The Idea of Accountability ...........................................................................................................