Who we are: voter participation, rationality and the 1999 election

Abstract This article suggests that voting behaviour during the 1999 South African election refutes the claim (derived from rational choice theory, but common among South African elites) that voters base their decisions on whether or not to cast a ballot on mainly instrumental criteria. Rather, the election revealed a high degree of enthusiasm for democratic participation as an intrinsic value. The article argues that this has important implications for governance strategy, providing a critique of the prevalent assumption that democratic strengthening will depend largely on enhanced material ‘delivery’ rather than on broadening and deepening democracy.