James Kellman writes: For the first time in the history of Africa’s largest country, a challenger defeated a sitting Nigerian president via the ballot box. The losing incumbent in the March 28 election, Goodluck Jonathan, graciously conceded defeat to Muhammadu Buhari, offered his best wishes, and urged supporters to follow due process. Nigeria’s accomplishment is all the more remarkable in the face of terrorist threats from Boko Haram.

Yet in much of Africa, democracy remains an empty word. The phrase that U.S. diplomat Edward Djerejian coined in 1992 — “one person, one vote, one time” – is the more established rule. Leaders, once elected, to contrive to stick around for decades, defying term limits, and rigging elections. For example, the president of Burundi, Pierre Nkrunziza, is standing for election to a third term on July 15, in defiance of constitutional limits. The European Union has withheld funds to conduct the election, and, already, violence has broken out at polling stations.

In Togo recently, President Faure Gnassingbe won a third term. He and his late father have been running the country now for 48 years. Indeed, nine African countries have a leader who has been in power for 21 years or more.

Only one African country, Mauritius, qualifies as a “full democracy.” Some 27 sub-Saharan nations are “ruled by an authoritarian regime or nominal democracy,” and 13 countries have no presidential term limits.  Time for Democracy in Africa