Over the past two decades, South African politics have increasingly been shaped – and perhaps even defined – by contentious politics. Citizens have taken to the streets to protest corruption, inadequate service delivery, and ineffective leadership. This rise of protests and riots has occurred during a period of political transition, where the ruling African National […] Read more

Although we frequently hear the complaint that politics is ‘all talk’, at the right moment speaking effectively can be a powerful resource. Steadying nerves, offering reassurance, provoking questions or disrupting consensus may, in specific contexts, make an enormous difference. In my recent article in Politics I argue rhetorical enquiry helps us understand speech as an […] Read more

During recent decades, many have come to believe that political parties in advanced democracies have become largely dominated by their public figureheads (party leaders, MPs, cabinet ministers, etc.). The weakening of parties’ activist elites who run extra-parliamentary party organizations is said to result from the grave transformation of parties’ operating ‘environment’: the mediatization, ‘governmentalization’ and […] Read more

Would you support a policy you like, but proposed by someone you don’t? The answer to this question is complex as it depends on several factors such as the policy design in question. What is more, the spillover from politics to policy is difficult to be identified as they are intertwined: even an honest respondent […] Read more