Senate elections were held in the Republic of the Congo on 31 August 2017. The Senate was renewed in its entirety for the first time as the result of constitutional reform enacted two years earlier. Previously Senate elections had seen half the members elected.
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72 seats in the Senate | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This lists parties that won seats. See the complete results below.
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The Congolese Party of Labour (on the political left) kept the vast majority of seats at 44 out of 72. Twelve other seats went to close independents, with the rest to allies. The opposition only got two seats.[1]
Background
editThe elections had taken place one month after the legislative elections, which had seen the victory of the Congolese Party of Labour of president Denis Sassou Nguesso, which retained the majority of seats. As with that election, the senate election had taken place while the Pool Department had been shaken by battles between the forces of order and the militants of Frédéric Bintsamou, also known as Pastor Ntumi, which caused the displacement of millions of people. Thus, the vote only took place in eleven of the twelve departments of the Republic of the Congo.[1]
Electoral system
editThe Senate is composed of 72 senators elected for a six-year term using first-past-the-post voting in an indirect election. Six senators are elected for each of the 12 departments.[2]
The senators are elected by an electoral college composed of departmental and municipal counselors, for about 1,100 electors. Starting from the constitutional revision validated in a 2015 referendum, the Senate is completely renewed in each election. Before that, it had been renewed by half every three years, with the six-year terms staggered on the appropriate half-term.[2][3][4]
The senate was initially composed of 66 senators, before switching to 72 during the 2008 elections because of the creation of the Pointe-Noire Department.
Results
editThe Congolese Party of Labour (PCT) took the majority of seats with 44 seats, even though it only took 24 seats in the previous senate. All departments in the center and north were considered electoral strongholds for President Nguesso. Twelve other seats went to independents and to eight other parties close to the PCT, such as PULP, RDPS, Club 2002, and the PRL.[5] The Pan-African Union for Social Democracy, the principal opposition party, only obtained two seats, down from four before.[1]
The vote could not happen in the Pool Department. So, the terms for the six senators from that department were extended by the Constitutional Court until there are partial elections, whose date remains to be determined.[1]
| Party | Seats | |
|---|---|---|
| Congolese Party of Labour | 44 | |
| Pan-African Union for Social Democracy | 2 | |
| Action and Renewal Movement | 2 | |
| Rally for Democracy and Social Progress | 2 | |
| Club 2002 – Party for the Unity and the Republic | 1 | |
| Party for Unity, Liberty and Progress | 1 | |
| Liberal Republican Party | 1 | |
| Patriotic Front | 1 | |
| Independents | 12 | |
| Extended Pool Department senators | 6 | |
| Total | 72 | |
| Source: ADIAC[6] | ||
Among those elected to power was Pierre Ngolo, age 63, the secretary general since 2011.[1]
References
edit
- ^ a b c d e "Congo-Brazza : le parti de Denis Sassou Nguesso remporte les élections sénatoriales" [Congo-Brazzaville: the party of Denis Sassou Nguesso wins the senatorial elections]. JeuneAfrique.com (in French). 1 September 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
- ^ a b Douniama, Parfait Wilfried (3 January 2023). "Sénatoriales 2023 : des forces en présence" [Senatorials 2023: forces present]. AGENCE D'INFORMATION D'AFRIQUE CENTRALE (in French). Retrieved 10 August 2023.
- ^ "IPU PARLINE database: CONGO (Sénat), Texte intégral" [IPU PARLINE database: CONGO (Senate), Full text]. Inter-Parliamentary Union (in French). Retrieved 10 August 2023.
- ^ "Parlement: les grands électeurs appelés à voter les nouveaux sénateurs" [Parliament: big electors called to vote for new senators]. AGENCE D'INFORMATION D'AFRIQUE CENTRALE (in French). 30 August 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
- ^ "Sénatoriales 2017 : la majorité présidentielle rafle tous les sièges de Brazzaville" [Senatorials 2017: the presidential majority takes all the seats of Brazzaville]. CONGO ACTUEL (in French). 31 August 2017. Archived from the original on 4 September 2017.
- ^ Koubemba, Jean-Jacques (2 September 2017). "Résultats des élections sénatoriales du 31 juillet 2017" [Results of the senatorial elections on 31 July 2017]. AGENCE D'INFORMATION D'AFRIQUE CENTRALE (in French). Retrieved 10 August 2023.