Table Of Content

ROUTLEDGE HANDBOOK ON ELECTIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA This Handbook analyzes elections in the Middle East and North Africa and seeks to overcome normative assumptions about the linkage between democracy and elections. Structured around five main themes, contributors provide chapters detailing how their case studies illustrate specific themes within individual country settings. Authors disentangle the various aspects informing elections as a process in the Middle East by taking into account the different contexts where the electoral contest occurs and placing these into a broader comparative context. The findings from this Handbook connect with global electoral developments, empirically demonstrating that there is very little that is “exceptional” about the Middle East and North Africa when it comes to electoral contests. Routledge Handbook on Elections in the Middle East and North Africa is the first book to examine all aspects related to elections in the Middle East and North Africa. Through such comprehensive coverage and systematic analysis, it will be a key resource for students and scholars interested in politics, elections, and democracy in the Middle East and North Africa. Francesco Cavatorta is Professor in the Department of Political Science, Université Laval, Québec, Canada. He is currently working on a collaborative project examining political parties and coalition governments in the Middle East and North Africa. Valeria Resta is Guest Lecturer in the Department of Social and Political Sciences, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy. She is currently working on a collaborative project examining political parties and coalition governments in the Middle East and North Africa. ROUTLEDGE HANDBOOK ON ELECTIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA Edited by Francesco Cavatorta and Valeria Resta Designed cover image: Majid First published 2023 by Routledge 4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2023 selection and editorial matter, Francesco Cavatorta & Valeria Resta; individual chapters, the contributors The right of Francesco Cavatorta & Valeria Resta to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record has been requested for this book ISBN: 978-1-032-02874-3 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-032-02884-2 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-003-18562-8 (ebk) DOI: 10.4324/9781003185628 Typeset in Bembo by Deanta Global Publishing Services, Chennai, India CONTENTS List of Figures ix List of Tables xi Acknowledgements xiii Notes on Contributors xiv 1 Elections in the Middle East and North Africa 1 Francesco Cavatorta and Valeria Resta PART 1 Elections in authoritarian settings 11 2 The functions of authoritarian elections: Symbolism, safety valves, and clientelism 13 Matt Buehler and Calista Boyd 3 Elections and the bureaucratic management of plurality in Algeria 26 Thomas Serres 4 Parliamentary elections under Mohammed VI’s reign (2002–2021) 39 Inmaculada Szmolka 5 Electoral districts in Jordan: An analytical study 54 Mohammed Torki Bani Salameh 6 Elections in Mauritania: The role of the military 66 Raquel Ojeda-Garcia and Samara López-Ruiz v Contents 7 “Only me”: Repression, legal engineering, and state-managed elections in Sisi’s Egypt 78 Hesham Sallam PART 2 Elections in democratic and quasi-democratic settings 95 8 Israel’s electoral system and political instability: Electoral fragmentation, party unity, and the prime minister’s political leadership 97 Maoz Rosenthal 9 When free and fair elections are not enough: Party fragmentation and unaccountability in Tunisia 109 Ester Sigillò 10 Pre-electoral coalitions in Iraq: The case of the Communist–Sadrist alliance 121 Paride Turlione 11 Elections and democratic backsliding in Turkey 134 Sebnem Gumuscu 12 From one-sect one-vote to one-man one-vote? Demands for reforming the electoral system in Lebanon 147 Rosita Di Peri 13 Competition under systemic religious constraints: Presidential elections in Iran 160 Pejman Abdolmohammadi PART 3 Rules, institutions, and the infrastructure of elections 173 14 The management of elections in Tunisia: The Independent High Authority for Elections 175 Mohamed Chafik Sarsar and Nidhal Mekki 15 Partial and non-partisan: The municipal council elections in Saudi Arabia 187 Hendrik Kraetzschmar 16 Elections in the Arab World: International monitoring and assistance 201 Pietro Marzo vi Contents 17 The independence referendum in Kurdistan 214 Sara Dilzar Mustafa 18 Gender quotas, constituency service, and women’s empowerment: Lessons from Algeria 222 Meriem Aissa PART 4 Elections and campaigning 235 19 A minority goes to the polls: Arab voters in Israel 237 Arik Rudnitzky 20 Elections in Occupied Palestine: Control, resistance and contention 251 Francesco Saverio Leopardi 21 Electoral campaigns in post–Ben Ali’s Tunisia: Electoral expertise and renewed clientelism 263 Déborah Perez-Galan 22 Digital strategies of Tunisian political parties: The case of the 2018 municipal elections 277 Bader Ben Mansour 23 The role of media in electoral campaigns in the pandemic era: the case of Kuwait 292 Geoffrey Martin 24 Opposition coordination under a competitive authoritarian regime: the case of the 2019 local elections in Turkey 310 Berk Esen and Hakan Yavuzyılmaz 25 Polarisation and elections under competitive authoritarianism: The case of Turkey after 2013 329 Şebnem Yardımcı Geyikçi 26 From ballots to bullets: Libyan 2012 elections as the origin of the unachieved transition 342 Chiara Loschi vii Contents PART 5 Voting behaviour 353 27 The rationality of Arab voters: why and how people vote in non- democratic regimes across the MENA region 355 Valeria Resta 28 Clientelism in MENA elections 366 Miquel Pellicer and Eva Wegner 29 The consequences of Arab parties’ divide and quest for power in Israeli politics on Arab voters 378 Sawsan Khalife 30 Class and religious cleavages: the case of Lebanon 387 Joseph Daher 31 Ideology and Electoral Choices in Arab Elections 401 Enea Fiore 32 The Arab Generation Z: From Disillusionment to Pragmatism 412 Dina Shehata and Abdalmajeed Abualela Index 429 viii FIGURES 1.1 V-Dem Electoral Component Index, 2021 3 4.1 Perception of Electoral Integrity (PEI) in Middle East and North African countries 44 4.2 Electoral and parliamentary parties/coalitions in Morocco 45 4.3 Electoral participation in the election of the Moroccan House of Representatives (2002–2021) 46 4.4 Parliamentary representation of the main Moroccan political parties (percentage of seats) 47 8.1 Effective number of parliamentary parties, 1948–2021 102 11.1 Electoral and liberal democracy in Turkey, 2000–2021 139 11.2 Electoral fairness in Turkey, 2000–2021 142 19.1 Breakdown of the Arab vote in Knesset elections, 1949–1973 241 19.2 Breakdown of the Arab vote in Knesset elections, 1977–1999 245 19.3 Breakdown of the Arab vote in Knesset elections, 2003–2021 248 22.1 Strategic objectives assigned to digital campaigns (inspired by Giasson et al., 2018, 2019) 281 22.2 Distribution of strategic objectives by political parties 282 23.1 Media sample topics 298 23.2 What is the role of government media in elections? 298 23.3 What is the most important medium for campaigning? 299 23.4 Was the quality of media content by candidates better than in previous elections? 300 23.5 Overall, how would you rate the quality of media content in 2020? 301 23.6 How would you rate the quality of candidates? 301 23.7 What were the most important topics in the election? 302 23.8 What are the most important topics concerning corruption? 303 23.9 Does media influence your voting preferences? 304 23.10 What does influence your voting preferences? 304 ix