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“No Bourgeoisie, No Democracy”? The Political Attitudes of the Kenyan Middle Class

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  • Nic Cheeseman

Abstract

Barrington Moore's famous line ‘no bourgeoisie, no democracy’ is one of the most quoted claims in political science. But has the rise of the African middle class promoted democratic consolidation? This paper uses the case of Kenya to investigate the attitudes and behaviours of the middle class. Analysis of Afrobarometer survey data reveals that the middle class is more likely to hold pro‐democratic attitudes. This suggests that Moore's argument deserves to be taken seriously, at least in some African countries, and that contemporary demographic changes will improve the prospects for democratic consolidation. However, qualitative evidence from the Kenyan 2013 general election raises important questions about the resilience of these attitudes. The middle class may be more inclined to democratic attitudes than their less well‐off counterparts, but class continues to intersect with ethnicity, and its political salience is likely to wax and wane as a result. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of International Development published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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  • Nic Cheeseman, 2015. "“No Bourgeoisie, No Democracy”? The Political Attitudes of the Kenyan Middle Class," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(5), pages 647-664, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:jintdv:v:27:y:2015:i:5:p:647-664
    DOI: 10.1002/jid.3057
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    Cited by:

    1. Simplice Asongu & Joseph Nnanna, 2020. "Inclusive human development in sub-Saharan Africa," Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 14(2), pages 183-200, May.
    2. Simplice A Asongu & Sara Le Roux, 2019. "Understanding Sub-Saharan Africa’s Extreme Poverty Tragedy," International Journal of Public Administration, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 42(6), pages 457-467, April.
    3. Simplice A. Asongu & Nicholas M. Odhiambo, 2021. "Income Levels, Governance and Inclusive Human Development in Sub-Saharan Africa," Applied Research in Quality of Life, Springer;International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies, vol. 16(1), pages 71-103, February.
    4. Simplice A. Asongu & Samba Diop, 2022. "Bribing to escape poverty in Africa," Working Papers 22/090, European Xtramile Centre of African Studies (EXCAS).
    5. Simplice A. Asongu & Sara le Roux, 2018. "Understanding Sub-Saharan Africa’s Extreme Poverty Tragedy," Research Africa Network Working Papers 18/012, Research Africa Network (RAN).
    6. Clément, Matthieu & Rougier, Eric & Berrou, Jean-Philippe & Combarnous, François & Darbon, Dominique, 2022. "“What’s in the middle”: Scratching beneath the surface of the middle class(es) in Brazil, Côte d’Ivoire, Turkey and Vietnam," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).

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