Machiko Tsubura is a Research Fellow in the African Studies Group of the Area Studies Center at the Institute of Developing Economies in Japan. Her research interests lie in electoral and party politics, and governance in sub-Saharan Africa with a focus on Tanzania. Her current research themes are: 1) presidential nomination and management of factionalism in dominant parties in Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Tanzania in comparative perspective; and 2) the influence of socialism on contemporary Tanzanian politics by employing the political settlement approach.