Islamist party mobilization : Tunisia's Ennahda and Algeria's HMS compared, 1989-2014

This book aims to explore how Islamist parties mobilize debates, discourses, and environments in electoral authoritarian systems. Interrelating three theoretical schools, Electoral Authoritarianism Theory, Protest Voting Theory, and Political Process Theory, it adopts and expands on a demand-and-supply framework to approach the subject in a novel way, and adapts them to address North Africa, a region in which such theoretical scholarship has until now not been conducted. In-depth case studies focus on two Islamist parties in North Africa, Tunisia's Ennahda and Algeria's HMS, both of which adopted the Muslim Brotherhood model, had charismatic leaders, and were active in the political scene from 1989-2014, the period between their first electoral trial and their electoral participation after taking part in governance. The chapters proceed chronologically, providing a historical treatment of the evolution of Ennahda and the HMS since their inception and addressing their development in two and a half decades. Chuchu Zhang is an Associate Professor at the School of International Relations and Public Affairs, Fudan University, China. She received her PhD in Politics and International Studies from the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom. Her research interests are in Middle Eastern politics, terrorism, and China-Middle East relations. Acknowledgements 5 Contents 6 Abbreviations 7 List of Figures 10 List of Tables 11 1 Introduction 12 The Questions Posed 13 Clarification of Definitions 15 Islamism and Institutionalized Islamism 15 Social Movement Mobilization and Islamist Parties 15 Political Parties and Islamist Parties 16 Algerian HMS and Tunisian Ennahda as Study Cases 17 The Boundaries of the Literature 18 Data Sources 23 Methodology and Methods 26 The Structure of the Study 26 References 27 2 Theorizing Islamist Parties’ Mobilization at the Polls 34 A Heuristic Framework of Islamist Parties’ Electoral Mobilization 34 The Demand Side: Voting in Electoral Authoritarian Regimes 35 Supply Side: Political Opportunities, Organizational Strength and Framing Processes 39 Linking Demand and Supply 46 Applying the Demand-and-Supply Model in the Cases of Algeria and Tunisia 47 Plan of Case Study Analysis 48 References 56 3 Historical Background 61 Origins and Party Creation of Tunisia’s MTI 62 Bourguiba’s Religious Reforms and the Formation of JI 62 JI’s Politicization and Formation of MTI 68 Tension with the Regime and MTI’s Splintering 75 Beginnings and Politicization of the HMS 79 Origins of Islamism and Authoritarian “Islamic Socialism” 79 Early Activities of the Islamist Movement and Interactions with the Regime 87 Conclusion 93 References 95 4 First Trial at the Polls 103 MTI/Ennahda in the 1989 Election 104 The Bread Riot of 1984 104 Riot Control and Ben Ali’s “Constitutional Coup” 107 “Honeymoon” Between Ben Ali and MTI 109 Party Organization 111 Attending Elections and Formulating Frames 115 Party Disputes, Framing Inconsistency, and Mobilization Outcome 119 HMS’ Belated Participation in Elections of 1990–1991 122 Black October 122 Bendjedid’s Political Liberalization 125 Algeria’s Political Spectrum in the Early 1990s and the Challenge from FIS 126 HMS’ Unsuccessful Mobilization 130 Conclusion 136 References 138 5 Drastic Changes 146 Exclusion of Ennahda from the Political Scene 147 Prosecution Wave 147 Nahdaouis in Exile and in Prison 151 Rethinking Islam, Democracy, and Western Philosophies 156 HMS’ Rise in the Décennie Noir 160 Coup d’État and Décennie Noir 161 Opportunities for HMS 163 Moucharaka Strategy 165 Enlargement of Support Base 168 Conclusion 172 References 174 6 Co-optation or Resistance? 181 Ennahda’s Evolution in Abeyance 182 Façade of Political Openness 182 Ennnahda’s Organizational Dimensions 186 Ideology, Strategy and Framing in “Abeyant Mobilization” 189 HMS: Engagement in the Presidential Alliance 194 The Post-Civil War Era: A Changing Landscape 195 Shifting Political Opportunities 196 Joining the Presidential Alliance 200 HMS’ Framing Inconsistency and Mobilization Failure 204 Conclusion 213 References 214 7 Entering the 2010s 221 Tunisia: Ennahda’s Ascent to Power 221 Revolution for Dignity and Freedom 222 Political Opportunities for Ennahda 224 Ennahda’s Role in Tunisian Uprisings 226 Ennahda’s Return 227 Internal Debates and the Consensus Principle 230 Running for Elections 234 Ennahda in Office 240 Algeria: AAV’s Unsuccessful Trial 243 Escaping the Arab Awakening 244 Formation of Alliance de L’Algérie Verte 246 AAV’s Unpopular Frames 252 Conclusion 259 References 260 8 Conclusion 268 Comparison of Ennahda and the HMS, 1989–2014 269 New Contributions on Theory, Voting Behavior and Islamist Party Mobilization 271 Theoretical Insights 271 Elaborating Voting Behavior in North Africa 272 Understanding the Functioning of Islamist Parties 273 Future Avenues of Research 277 In Sum 278 References 279 Appendix: Electoral Outcomes of Algerian APN Elections, 1991–2012 281 Glossary 283 Index 286 This book aims to explore how Islamist parties mobilize debates, discourses, and environments in electoral authoritarian systems. Interrelating three theoretical schools, Electoral Authoritarianism Theory, Protest Voting Theory, and Political Process Theory, it adopts and expands on a demand-and-supply framework to approach the subject in a novel way, and adapts them to address North Africa, a region in which such theoretical scholarship has until now not been conducted. In-depth case studies focus on two Islamist parties in North Africa, Tunisia2019s Ennahda and Algeria2019s HMS, both of which adopted the Muslim Brotherhood model, had charismatic leaders, and were active in the political scene from 1989-2014, the period between their first electoral trial and their electoral participation after taking part in governance. The chapters proceed chronologically, providing a historical treatment of the evolution of Ennahda and the HMS since their inception and addressing their development in two and a half decades." From publisher's website « This book aims to explore how Islamist parties mobilize debates, discourses, and environments in electoral authoritarian systems. Interrelating three theoretical schools, Electoral Authoritarianism Theory, Protest Voting Theory, and Political Process Theory, it adopts and expands on a demand-and-supply framework to approach the subject in a novel way, and adapts them to address North Africa, a region in which such theoretical scholarship has until now not been conducted. In-depth case studies focus on two Islamist parties in North Africa, Tunisia's Ennahda and Algeria's HMS, both of which adopted the Muslim Brotherhood model, had charismatic leaders, and were active in the political scene from 1989-2014, the period between their first electoral trial and their electoral participation after taking part in governance. The chapters proceed chronologically, providing a historical treatment of the evolution of Ennahda and the HMS since their inception and addressing their development in two and a half decades. « (Verlagsbeschreibung) Zsfg.: This book aims to explore how Islamist parties mobilize debates, discourses, and environments in electoral authoritarian systems. Interrelating three theoretical schools, Electoral Authoritarianism Theory, Protest Voting Theory, and Political Process Theory, it adopts and expands on a demand-and-supply framework to approach the subject in a novel way, and adapts them to address North Africa, a region in which such theoretical scholarship has until now not been conducted. In-depth case studies focus on two Islamist parties in North Africa, Tunisia's Ennahda and Algeria's HMS, both of which adopted the Muslim Brotherhood model, had charismatic leaders, and were active in the political scene from 1989-2014, the period between their first electoral trial and their electoral participation after taking part in governance. The chapters proceed chronologically, providing a historical treatment of the evolution of Ennahda and the HMS since their inception and addressing their development in two and a half decades Front Matter ....Pages i-xv Introduction (Chuchu Zhang)....Pages 1-22 Theorizing Islamist Parties’ Mobilization at the Polls (Chuchu Zhang)....Pages 23-49 Historical Background (Chuchu Zhang)....Pages 51-92 First Trial at the Polls (Chuchu Zhang)....Pages 93-135 Drastic Changes (Chuchu Zhang)....Pages 137-171 Co-optation or Resistance? (Chuchu Zhang)....Pages 173-212 Entering the 2010s (Chuchu Zhang)....Pages 213-259 Conclusion (Chuchu Zhang)....Pages 261-273 Back Matter ....Pages 275-289