MJAAR

The Unsteady Pulse: Voter Discipline and Electoral Violence in Uganda's Historical Context

Dr. Arinaitwe Julius, Ahumuza Audrey


Abstract

Electoral violence has become a defining characteristic of Uganda's political landscape, undermining democratic development and perpetuating authoritarian governance despite the formal restoration of multiparty politics in 2005. This study examined electoral violence as a systematic mechanism of voter discipline within Uganda's historical context, tracing its evolution from the post-independence period through contemporary electoral cycles and analyzing its strategic deployment, impacts, and implications for democratic consolidation. Employing a mixed-methods research design, the study combined historical analysis of archival documents and electoral records spanning 1962 to 2023 with quantitative survey data from 1,847 respondents across ten districts representing Uganda's four major regions, complemented by 48 in-depth interviews with key informants including electoral officials, political actors, civil society leaders, and violence victims. Univariate analysis revealed that 36.4% of respondents personally experienced electoral violence while 69.8% witnessed it, with intimidation and threats (59.1%) being the most prevalent form, and state security forces and ruling party operatives collectively identified as perpetrators in over 80% of incidents. Bivariate analysis demonstrated that violence exposure was significantly associated with demographic and political characteristics (all p

Keywords

Discipline and Electoral Violence
Metropolitan Journal of Academic and Applied Research

Cite This Article

Dr. Arinaitwe Julius & Ahumuza Audrey (2026). The Unsteady Pulse: Voter Discipline and Electoral Violence in Uganda's Historical Context. Metropolitan Journal of Academic and Applied Research, 5(3). https://journals.miu.ac.ug/pages/article.php?article_id=268

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