So, it's election time in Namibia (we even got a mention on the WaPo website). No, this is not going to be a political post (feel free to take a moment to celebrate you're not being subjected to my long-winded views). Instead, I want more to share the culture of elections in Namibia. So, basically, we have presidential elections every 5 years. Our current president, Hifikepunye Pohamba, our second president, is stepping down after 2 terms (he is limited to two terms, but we've seen how well term limits work in other developing democracies). While Namibia is a democratic system on paper, there is no real suspense, as everyone knows SWAPO's candidate, current Prime Minister Hage Geingob, is going to win. Namibia is described as a "one party dominant" democracy. The truth is, it's more of a proto-democracy. Yes, people vote, but the voting is more of a formality, given how much control SWAPO has, and as Samuel Huntington said, you truly become a democracy when you have your second change of power (the so-called "two turnover" test, which is one of the things I actually agree with Huntington on).
Okay, enough of the boring political science lecture. Seeing as most of you had to Google Namibia the first time I told you I was coming here (it's okay, so did I), I doubt you're interested in taking a class on the politics of Namibia, and even if you were, you probably don't want me to be the teacher. Instead, what you really want to know is what is it like being here for an election, and how it compares to the US. If you want local coverage, feel free to go to my links tab, or be lazy and just click on these links for Namibia's major English language newspapers, New Era, The Namibian, The Namibian Sun, and The Windhoek Observer (okay, maybe not as big a paper as the other 3, but I went to Windhoek for my first VAC meeting last week, and their office was right down the street from the hotel), as well as the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC).
Now, for my experiences (after all, isn't that what this blog is supposed to be about?). One of Peace Corps' rules is that I am not allowed to engage in local politics. Sure, I may just smile, nod, and pretend to agree with what someone said about a politician in order to avoid a confrontation, or even just give a "Viva SWAPO" or "Viva UDF" when people say it to me in order to avoid conflicts with drunk politicized people (my office is, after all, used to hot party rallies from time-to-time). However, for those of you who have ever been on social media in the days leading up to an election, or who have lived in a very political place, like DC, are aware, it can often be impossible to avoid being sucked into political conversations. A lot of people take the attitude that whether or not you agree with their politics, you should support SWAPO, because they are going to win, so it's better to be on their good side, especially if you work for government in any way (such attitudes make me cry, though blind support for party name is just as bad in the US).
Rallies remind me a lot of the US. Just not necessarily political rallies in the US. No, it's more the last quarter of a Redskins-Cowboys games. People wear shirts and hats for the party they support, wave flags and banners, chant the party name, sing soccer-style songs, blow whistles, etc. Party support generally comes down to tribal divides, racial divides, and regional divides, with SWAPO, who were the guys who led the war of Independence, being far and away, the biggest party. Another thing you see here is people driving around in open-back bakkies, with party stickers, colors, candidates' faces, and flags adorning them, blasting music out of speakers on the bed. There are signs all over the place with The Honourable Dr. Hage Geingob's face on them in my town (even though UDF has a major presence here). We have a national holiday for the election.
One interesting thing about this election is I believe this is the first time Namibia will be using the electronic ballots for the election. Some people have voiced concern over corruption with the machines, and it will be interesting to see how people who have never used such technology react to the machines. Right now, my office is being used to train election officials to set up, use, and fix the machines, in case of any issues. Long-term, this is an exciting shift, and I don't really think it will have much impact on results, but I'm curious to see how electronic voting is received in Namibia.
Instead of actually concluding this post, I'm going to "pause" it. You may have noticed this one is "part 1". Check back next week (or maybe this weekend) for "part 2", which will be my talk of election day itself, as well as kind of the concluding of this post. I will answer such questions of "How were the machines receive?" and "What were the results?" and "What does an American do when he can't vote?" and "Do Namibians get 'I Voted' stickers", among other pressing concerns I am sure are now running through your mind.
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