Is direct democracy the panacea to solve the problem of strong personalization of African neo patrimonial politics? If electoral democracy is the problem; is direct democracy the solution? The paper describes the legal framework and the implementation in Africa countries. Referendums are solely implemented at the national level. There are no citizen initiatives and agenda initiatives. Referendums were often used to support a regime change in the 1960s (independence) and in the 1990s (multiparty system) and to strengthen and finalize conflict resolution. Nevertheless the predominantly used presidential plebiscites are characterized by governmental control within de facto one party systems. But failing referendums in Zimbabwe 2000 and Kenya 2005 show that their influence on governmental behavior could be important. What are the reasons for the “lost referendums" and what were the consequences. What are the reasons for a successful plebiscite such as in Kenya 2010.
