By Dr. Sammy Crabbe
Article 4 of a 24-part weekly newspaper series on voter trust and voting intentions in Africa
In the previous article, we examined how voter trust is generated inside political parties through competence, fairness, inclusion, communication, and participation. That analysis showed that trust begins long before campaigns and stabilises voting intentions well ahead of election day. This article moves to the next phase of the trust cycle by addressing a quieter but more demanding question: how is trust sustained once it has been generated?
The answer matters because many African political parties do not lose trust while campaigning; they lose it while governing or waiting for the next election.
Trust is tested most severely between elections
Trust sustenance is tested most severely between elections, when public attention fades and internal party life becomes more consequential than public performance. During campaigns, parties are disciplined by urgency, visibility, and competition. Between elections, discipline must come from within.
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It is in these periods that rules are enforced or ignored, dissent is managed or punished, and internal promises are honoured or quietly abandoned. Voters may not follow every internal decision closely, but they feel the consequences through rumours, elite defections, regional disengagement, and declining participation. Trust is sustained when parties behave consistently even when they are not being watched.
Internal democracy as the anchor of sustained trust
Internal democracy plays a central role in sustaining trust over time. Parties that allow regular, meaningful participation in leadership selection, policy debate, and internal decision-making give members reasons to remain invested between elections.
Internal democracy does not eliminate conflict, but it channels disagreement into predictable and legitimate processes. When members believe they will have future opportunities to influence outcomes, they tolerate present losses more patiently. Where internal democracy weakens, frustration accumulates quietly, and trust erodes even if the party continues to win elections.
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Moral authority and the consistency test
Moral authority is the second pillar of trust sustenance, and it is often misunderstood. Moral authority does not require perfection or moral posturing; it requires consistency between what a party says and what it tolerates.
Parties sustain trust when they enforce standards evenly, sanction misconduct regardless of status, and resist the temptation to excuse wrongdoing for short-term advantage. When leaders appear immune from consequences while ordinary members are disciplined harshly, trust begins to fray. Over time, voters interpret selective morality as evidence that principles are negotiable rather than guiding.
Organisational discipline and predictability
Organisational discipline is closely linked to moral authority, but it operates at a structural level. Discipline here refers not to punishment, but to clarity of roles, respect for procedures, and predictable decision-making.
Parties sustain trust when members know how decisions are made, who is responsible, and how disputes are resolved. Confusion, improvisation, and constant rule changes create uncertainty, which undermines confidence even among loyal supporters. A disciplined organisation signals seriousness and reliability, qualities voters value even when they disagree with specific decisions.
The hidden cost of power centralisation
One of the most damaging behaviours between elections is the quiet centralisation of power. Parties often justify centralisation as necessary for efficiency, unity, or electoral readiness. In reality, excessive centralisation weakens trust by stripping members of voice and ownership.
Decisions made by small inner circles may be faster, but they are rarely trusted widely. Over time, supporters disengage emotionally, participation declines, and voting intentions become conditional rather than committed. What looks like control in the short term often produces fragility in the long term.
Why trust is usually lost outside campaign seasons
African political experience repeatedly shows that trust is lost between elections, not during them. Electoral defeats are often blamed on messaging failures or external shocks, but post-election analysis frequently reveals years of accumulated grievances.
Regions feel neglected, youth wings feel sidelined, and internal elections feel predetermined. These experiences shape how supporters interpret campaign messages when elections return. Trust sustenance therefore determines whether campaign promises are received with belief or scepticism.
Managing success without hollowing out trust
Trust sustenance also depends on how parties manage success. Winning power creates temptations that test internal values more severely than opposition ever could.
Access to state resources, appointments, and influence can distort internal incentives, turning participation into competition for favours rather than commitment to shared goals. Parties that fail to separate organisational integrity from access to power often sustain electoral dominance briefly while hollowing out trust internally. When power is eventually lost, the absence of internal trust becomes painfully visible.
Communication between elections as reassurance, not persuasion
Communication remains critical during these periods, but its function changes. Between elections, communication is less about persuasion and more about reassurance.
Parties sustain trust when they explain decisions, manage expectations honestly, and maintain dialogue even when news is uncomfortable. Silence or avoidance breeds suspicion far faster than unpopular announcements delivered transparently. Voters interpret openness during quiet periods as a signal of respect, which reinforces trust even when outcomes disappoint.
Why trust erosion is usually invisible until it is too late
The cumulative effect of these dynamics is that trust sustenance is largely invisible until it fails. Parties often interpret electoral survival as evidence that trust remains intact. In reality, survival may reflect weak opposition, fragmented alternatives, or temporary loyalty rather than genuine confidence.
By the time voting intentions visibly shift, the underlying trust has already eroded. What appears sudden is usually the delayed consequence of years of neglect.
Trust sustenance as a strategic necessity
Understanding trust sustenance explains why some parties survive long periods of economic difficulty or policy failure while others collapse despite recent success. Parties that protect internal democracy, maintain moral authority, and enforce organisational discipline retain reservoirs of trust that cushion shocks.
Parties that neglect these foundations may appear strong until the moment they are not. Trust sustenance, therefore, is not a maintenance task but a strategic one that determines long-term viability.
The next article confronts an uncomfortable reality that many parties prefer to avoid. Article 5 will examine how trust is eroded, focusing on the behaviours and systems through which parties damage themselves while believing they are winning. It will show why trust erosion is often mistaken for stability, and why the warning signs are visible long before voters finally walk away.
About the author
Dr. Sammy Crabbe is an experienced political leader with a distinguished record in party governance, organisational reform, and institutional strengthening within the New Patriotic Party (NPP), a major political party in Ghana. He has served at senior levels of the party, including as Greater Accra Regional Chairman and later as 2nd National Vice Chairman, where he coordinated complex party structures, improved internal accountability, and helped modernise operational processes across multiple constituencies and regions.
Drawing on his academic and professional background, Dr. Crabbe has introduced technology-enabled approaches to improve organisation, transparency, and data-driven management within the party. He holds a PhD in Business and Management from the Institute of Digital and Sustainable Futures at the University of Bradford, an MBA in International Marketing, and a Postgraduate Certificate in Research.
What is voter trust and why political parties keep misunderstanding it
