From the Two-Party to the Dominant-Party System in Mozambique, 1994-2012: Framing Frelimo Party Dominance in Context

Abstract

This thesis examines the abrupt end of Mozambique’s vibrant two-party system, which, by the middle of the past decade, had developed into a dominant- party system, instead of institutionalizing, as was the case in other African third wave democracies. While, from the second election, in 1999, the former rebel movement, RENAMO, went head-to-head with the former liberation movement, the ruling Frelimo, from the third election, held in 2004, RENAMO experienced a significant loss of votes, a loss repeated in 2009. This paved the way for a Frelimo breakthrough to dominance despite the fact that its voter share remained almost the same in all four elections.