Electing Peace
From Civil Conflict to Political Participation

This book examines the causes and consequences of post-conflict elections in securing and stabilizing peace agreements without the need to send troops.

Aila M. Matanock (Author)

9781107189171, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 25 July 2017

334 pages, 20 b/w illus. 19 tables
23.5 x 15.8 x 2 cm, 0.57 kg

'The extremely thorough research approach, the systematic approach of the author and her invigorating mixture of fundamental political considerations with statistical material and interview results make the book … not only worth reading for dealing with the special election aspect after civil wars, but also in general for the topic of Peace processes after civil wars.' Burkhard Luber, Milieu

Settlements to civil conflict, which are notably difficult to secure, sometimes contain clauses enabling the combatant sides to participate as political parties in post-conflict elections. In Electing Peace, Aila M. Matanock presents a theory that explains both the causes and the consequences of these provisions. Matanock draws on new worldwide cross-national data on electoral participation provisions, case studies in Central America, and interviews with representatives of all sides of the conflicts. She shows that electoral participation provisions, non-existent during the Cold War, are now in almost half of all peace agreements. Moreover, she demonstrates that these provisions are associated with an increase in the chance that peace will endure, potentially contributing to a global decline in civil conflict, a result which challenges prevailing pessimism about post-conflict elections. Matanock's theory and evidence also suggest a broader conception of international intervention than currently exists, identifying how these inclusive elections can enable external enforcement mechanisms and provide an alternative to military coercion by peacekeeping troops in many cases.

Part I. Introduction and Theory: 1. Credible transitions from civil conflict: provisions for combatant participation in post-conflict elections
2. Electoral participation provisions: a theory of external engagement
3. International involvement over time: changes with the end of the Cold War and patterns there-after
Part II. Causes of Electoral Participation Provisions: 4. Trading bullets for ballots: examining the inclusion of electoral participation provisions
5. Shifting expectations of engagement: paving a path for peace agreements based on electoral participation provisions
Part III. Consequences of Electoral Participation Provisions: 6. Participating for peace: examining the effect of electoral participation provisions on peace
7. Engaging through elections: external observation and incentives around elections during implementation
Part IV. Conclusion: 8. Securing peace: conclusions about electoral participation and external engagement in post-conflict states.

Subject Areas: Peacekeeping operations [JWLP], Elections & referenda [JPHF], Comparative politics [JPB], Peace studies & conflict resolution [GTJ]