Constitutional coups occur when members of government, parties, or branches of government seize power through technically legal means that, nevertheless, pose a similar threat as traditional coups d'état to stable, democratic, and constitutional governance.[1] Commonly, perpetrators will rewrite or alter their government's constitution in order to legally seize power.[2]
Constitutional coups generally occur without major upheavals like that which one may expect from extra-constitutional military coups, and they rarely occur in established, Western democracies. They are considered a relatively recent occurrence in global politics.[2]
Constitutional coups are facilitated by weak democratic institutions and an absence of "democratic culture" within countries.[3]
Constitutional democracies require a politically active public and political elites that are dedicated to maintaining constitutional institutions.[3] Consequently, struggles over government authority between factions, particularly ethnocultural groups, which care little for the preservation of democratic institutions are a common facilitator of constitutional coups.[3]
The following may all be considered types of constitutional coups:
- Extending an incumbents mandate through the extension or elimination of term limits or age limits
- Changing citizenship requirements for candidates to elected office which rule out opposition candidates
- Granting the president immunity from prosecution for crimes committed while in power
- Constitutionally postponing elections indefinitely
- Allowing an incumbent to stay in power after their mandate has ended
- Manipulating electoral law to ensure a win for the incumbent[4]
Constitutional Coups when Referring to Africa
In African states, a constitutional coup d'état has a more specific meaning than may be found when referring to other countries. In Africa, the phrase typically refers specifically to the expansion of executive power through the extension or elimination of constitutional term limits.[3][5][6] Another common strategy is for an incumbent to invalidate the candidacy of their opponent, making themselves the de facto winner.[4]
Constitutional coups often involve willing and participatory parliaments, and changes to term limits are often accompanied by other constitutional changes which are meant to weaken political opposition and ensure election victories.[4]
As many as 30 African heads of state of attempted to extend their mandates through constitutional changes since the early 1990s, when many African countries began democratizing.[4]
African heads of state have developed a preference for constitutional coups over military coups, in part, because they are less likely to anger foreign aid donors. In Africa, constitutional coups are an attempt to maintain the appearance of the rule of law and democracy while consolidating power.[6] In addition, the African Union and its predecessor, the Organization of African Unity, has developed effective policies to deal with military coups, but has so far been ineffective at preventing constitutional coups.[4] Documents published the AU/OAU to create a framework for intervention after coups, including the Lomé Declaration, the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Government, and the Constitutive Act of African Union, only consider unconstitutional regime change, not constitutional coups.[4]
Examples of Constitutional Coups
In Africa
Many African Presidents have changed their country's constitutions to extend their term-limits. These include Presidents Gnassingbé (Togo), Museveni (Uganda), Déby (Chad), Biya (Cameroon), Kagame (Rwanda), Nkurunziza (Burundi), and el-Sisi (Egypt).[3]
In 2005, the president of Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaoré, exploited a quirk of the 1991 constitution to stay in power after he had expended the term limits. Compaoré argued that, because he was elected to office before term limits were first instituted in 2000, they did not apply to him. The Constitutional Council of Burkina Faso, which was controlled by Compoaré and his political party, the Congress for Democracy and Progress, ruled in his favor. Compaoré then ran for and won a third term in office.[4]
Pakistan, 1953
Governor-General Ghulam Mohammad dismissed Pakistani Prime Minister Khawaja Nazimuddin's government in 1953 despite the Prime Minister enjoying the support of the Constituent Assembly and, subsequently, dismissed Pakistan's first constituent assembly in 1954.[7]
Malaysia, 1976
On April 15, the Bersatu Rakyat Jelata Sabah (Berjaya - Sabah People's United Front) was victorious in the state elections over the ruling Sabah Alliance party by persuading dissent members of the Sabah Alliance party to abandon their leader, Tun Mustapha bin Datu Harun.[8]
Tunisia, 1987
On November 7, the Prime Minister of Tunisia, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, deposed the president for life, Habib Bourguiba, and assumed the position of chief executive.[9]
The United States, 2000
During the United States presidential election debacle in Florida, then-governor Jeb Bush called on the state legislature to simply ignore the contested vote count and give Florida's electoral college votes to candidate George Bush, a fellow Republican and Jeb Bush's brother. This is theoretically constitutional, as the US constitution does not guarantee the right to vote in presidential elections. Rather, it authorizes each state to determine how its electors should be chosen. However, the coup was ultimately blocked by the US Supreme Court.[10]
Nepal, 2020
Khadha Prasad Sharma Oli, Prime Minister of Nepal, has attempted to dissolve the Nepalese parliament. The dissolution is being challenged under three different petitions in the Supreme Court, and it is contested whether or not the Prime Minister actually has the power to dissolve parliament. K P Oli attempted the power grab in the during a legitimacy crisis, as rival factions seek his resignation due to poor governance and authoritarian impulses.
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