states, by contrast, demonstrate varying degrees of bureaucracy, but with few exceptions
have a patrimonial rather than bureaucratic core. The goal of this paper is to investigate
how democracy works under the condition of patrimonial states. Further research along
these lines may very well demonstrate that existing theories of democratization under
conditions of bureaucracy are not directly challenged by democratization experiences in
Africa.
Bratton and van de Walle's (1997) contribution to our understanding of
democratic transitions derives not only from their identification of differences between
corporative and neopatrimonial regimes as starting points, but also from their insistence
that patrimonialism be understood as an (informally) institutionalized regime type, rather
than simply a manifestation of unrestrained 'personal rule.'
They note that the defining
elements of patrimonialism -- personalized authority, appropriation of offices, and
systematic clientelism -- have persisted through the passing of founding fathers, military
coups d'etat, and civil wars. Since Jackson and Rosberg's (1982) highly influential -- and
extremely voluntarist -- Personal Rule in Black Africa, analyses of patrimonialism (which
is often treated as synonymous with 'personal rule'), have tended to understate the extent
to which patrimonial practices are institutionalized, beyond the discretion of individual
rulers (Callaghy 1984, Snyder 1992, Bøås 2001, Brownlee 2002). Bratton and van de
Walle highlight that patrimonialism is a set of rules of the game, rather than the absence
of any set of rules. Even the most powerful president violates these rules at his peril.
This represents a critically important corrective, but one that does not go far enough.
1
Bratton and van de Walle use the term 'neopatrimonial' regimes. 'Neopatrimonial' generally refers to
contemporary patrimonial regimes, which are believed to lack the traditional legitimation that was critical
to Weber's original concept of patrimonialism. In my view, the question of 'tradition' and 'legitimacy' is
understudied, and the distinction insufficiently supported by evidence. I therefore use the more generic
term, patrimonial.
3
Convention