ABSTRACT
Modern democracy is party democracy. Even modern authoritarianism cannot do without parties – witness the rise of electoral authoritarian or competitive authoritarian regimes, of which Africa has its fair share (van de Walle, this volume). There are still countries without political parties. Eritrea has no political parties, and in the Kingdom of Swaziland, whilst political parties are now able to register thanks to pressure from the High Court, they are not allowed to contest elections. In addition to these party-less states there are anti-party states with ‘regimes that have suppressed pre-existing parties, take an anti-party stand, or profess an anti-party doctrine’ (Sartori 1976: 40). The most instructive examples come from Ghana and Uganda.
