Age and Political Participation in Africa’s Electoral Regimes

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between age and four types of political participation. Previous research has examined the age-participation nexus in the context of established democracies. In contrast, few studies have been devoted to assessing age differences in other contexts, particularly those of Africa, where the meaning of age and age groups could be different than in industrialised democracies. We argued in Africa that age's effect on political participation would vary depending on the country and across different forms of political participation. Analysing Afrobarometer survey data for 34 African countries, we find that the relationship between age and three forms of participation (voting, contacting and collective action) is curvilinear, with younger and older people less likely to participate. While for protest participation, the relationship between age and participation is linear, with protest decreasing with age. Next, we uncover that the countries’ policy formulation, implementation and electoral integrity affect the relationship between age and political participation. In contrast, breaking down the analysis into regional subsamples (West, Central, East, Southern, and North Africa), we observe no patterns of regional differences concerning political participation.