The book will provide the first regionally widespread and thematic look at African electoral systems and antecedent issues such as electoral laws, gender, politics, violence, and youth challenges in Africa. It will enrich the discussion on four country-specific studies within a general regional framework that explains and explores a "home base" viewpoint of what occurs before, during and after elections. The book will bring together a discussion of diverse issues under one umbrella, which has never been done before. This book begins a discussion from an academic's and practitioner's view of elections, contrasting the intellectual discussion with the author's personal experience of practical realities on the ground. Additionally, the book will create long-standing and lasting literature that will compare elections in some of Africa's leading democratic countries, such as South Africa, Kenya, Ghana and Sierra Leone.