Electoral management bodies as institutions of good governance: Focus on Lesotho Independent Electoral Commission

Abstract

Good Governance is an intrinsic part of democracy. A country to be democratic (it) must hold regular participative elections. Similarly, for good governance to be sustainable, the system must be open, accountable and participative. Participation in election on its own is a process of good governance. The paper argues that the role of Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs) or Independent Election Commissions (IECs) as institutions of good governance is to facilitate the above processes and ensure that elections are free and fair because this is essential for good governance to prosper. While Lesotho IEC appears to have faired relatively well as far as good governance is consent, the institution like other EMBs is still faced with some challenges which the IEC must address head on.