General Conclusion

Abstract

This chapter summarizes the book’s findings and discusses their generalizability and contribution to the understanding of the role of party systems for the democratic consolidation of electoral democracies and competitive authoritarian regimes of the third wave of democratization in Africa and beyond. It suggests a careful assessment of the role of dominant party systems for the quality of democracy. Furthermore, incumbency change does not necessarily lead to full democratization. Rather, party systems that experience turnover depend on the presence of an institutionalized opposition just like dominant party systems to develop democratic responsiveness. Opposition parties exposed to one-party dominance, clientelism and valence competition need sources of cohesion rooted in the legacy of a historic territorial cleavages to remain competitive and avoid internal fragmentation, factionalism and co-optation.