The following table overviews electoral systems used in Africa. For each country, there is a link to a separate page that explains the operation of the electoral system or systems for that country.

Numbers after a country’s name indicate the use of more than one electoral system over the period covered here with different systems numbered sequentially. Systems are differentiated according to Arend Lijphart’s criteria of either a change of electoral formula or a shift of at least 20% in the district magnitude at the decisive tier, or the legal threshold, or the legislature’s size.

The years after the country’s name or system number indicate the years in which that system was used. The earliest year may not be the first time that electoral system was used but the earliest for which there is reasonable certainty that it was used.

The classification of each system is most general at the Kingdom level and trends towards more specific as one moves through the Phylum, Class and Order. The classifications reflect broad usage in the electoral systems literature. At the Kingdom level, I utilize only three broad types: majoritarian, proportional, and ni-ni. See my book, Minority Rules, for more information on how I view these types.