Arbeitspapier

Does the African middle class defend democracy? Evidence from Kenya

Barrington Moore's famous line 'no bourgeoisie, no democracy' is one of the most quoted claims in political science. But has the rise of the African middle class promoted democratic consolidation? This paper uses the case of Kenya to investigate the attitudes and behaviours of the middle class. Analysis of Afrobarometer survey data reveals that the middle class is more likely to support the opposition and hold pro-democratic attitudes. This suggests Moore's claim holds, at least for some African countries, and that contemporary demographic changes will improve the prospects for democratic consolidation. However, qualitative evidence from the Kenyan 2013 general election raises important questions about the resilience of these attitudes. The middle class may be more inclined to democratic attitudes than their less well-off counterparts, but class continues to intersect with ethnicity and its political salience is likely to wax and wane as a result.

ISBN
978-92-9230-817-9
Language
Englisch

Bibliographic citation
Series: WIDER Working Paper ; No. 2014/096

Classification
Wirtschaft
Analysis of Collective Decision-Making: General
Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
Subject
middle class
democracy
elections
democratization
Kenya
Africa

Event
Geistige Schöpfung
(who)
Cheeseman, Nic
Event
Veröffentlichung
(who)
The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER)
(where)
Helsinki
(when)
2014

DOI
doi:10.35188/UNU-WIDER/2014/817-9
Handle
Last update
10.03.2025, 11:44 AM CET

Data provider

This object is provided by:
ZBW - Deutsche Zentralbibliothek für Wirtschaftswissenschaften - Leibniz-Informationszentrum Wirtschaft. If you have any questions about the object, please contact the data provider.

Object type

  • Arbeitspapier

Associated

  • Cheeseman, Nic
  • The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER)

Time of origin

  • 2014

Other Objects (12)