Political Parties and Democratic Consolidation in Botswana: Challenges and Opportunities

Since its first pre-independence elections in 1965, Botswana has maintained its democratic tradition, holding regular elections every five years without interruption. To this extent, it is a multiparty democracy. In Botswana, political parties are allowed to form and freely contest for political office. However, the development and institutionalization of political parties remain a major challenge to democratic consolidation in Botswana. This paper, therefore, argues that party development and institutionalization are major obstacles to democratic consolidation in Botswana. There are a number of factors that work against the development and institutionalization of political parties. In the light of these challenges, the paper concludes that probably the level of democracy in the country is the best that can be expected given the democratic stature of political parties in Botswana.