Somalia’s 1967 presidential vote was decided by vote-buying rather than platforms

Evidence

A large number of MPs were oblivious to the issues at stake in the presidential election, and were simply driven by their appetite for money or a ministerial post. For many of these MPs, this was not a contest between ideas, the records of the two candidates, or competing national agendas. On the contrary, their vote became a commodity, plain and simple, to be sold to the highest bidder and without the sanctity of a commercial or legal contract. In other words, any promise had a momentary shelf life and was subject to incessant bidding. Sharmarkee’s campaign deployed significant cash inducements, offers of ministerial and other positions, and protection from prosecution for four MPs accused of high-level corruption. — Abdi Ismail Samatar, Africa’s First Democrats, 926

Categorization

• XREF: Parallels classic patterns of clientelism and electoral corruption in other postcolonial African and developing democracies.
• QUESTION: How much cash did Sharmarkee’s ‘slush fund’ deploy relative to the 200,000 shillings Hussen authorized? Total campaign budgets are unclear.