Chad holds elections on national level for a head of state – the president – and a legislature. The president is elected for a five-year term by the people. The National Assembly (Assemblée Nationale) has 155 members, elected for a four-year term in 25 single-member constituencies and 34 multi-member constituencies. Chad is a one party dominant state with the Patriotic Salvation Movement in power, although according to the African Union, elections in Chad are generally free and fair. Human Rights Watch, however, has criticized the election process in Chad, arguing that they have problems such as electoral fraud, multiple voting, underage voting, and low voter turnout.[1]
History of elections
editFormer president, Idriss Déby, seized power in 1990 through a rebellion. The second election of Déby was reported by international observers to be fraudulent.[2] In 1997, parliamentary elections were held, with the MPS party of Déby winning 63 of the 125 seats existing at the time. International observers also claimed that these elections witnessed serious irregularities. In May 2001, Déby won the presidential election in the first round with 63% of the vote, but the election was considered to be fraudulent, and several opposition leaders were arrested after accusing the Chadian government of election fraud.[3] Because of prominent electoral irregularities in the previous elections in 2001 and 2006, the 2011 presidential election was boycotted by the major opposition parties, which resulted in Déby winning 89% of the vote in the first round.[4] Most recently, Déby was elected to his fifth term in 2016, after abolishing presidential term limits in 2004 by amending the Constitution of Chad.[5][6] Kodi Mahamat Bam, President of the Independent National Electoral Commission announced the postponement of legislative elections to April 2021. The stated reason was related to COVID-19.[7] On 20 April 2021 Idriss Déby was killed in battle against a group of rebels called FACT (the Front for Change and Concord in Chad).[8] His son Mahamat Déby is now president.[9]
Latest elections
editPresidential elections
edit| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mahamat Déby | Patriotic Salvation Movement | 3,777,279 | 61.00 | |
| Succès Masra | Les Transformateurs | 1,148,245 | 18.54 | |
| Albert Pahimi Padacké | National Rally for Democracy in Chad | 1,048,015 | 16.93 | |
| Lydie Beassemda | Party for Integral Democracy and Independence | 59,632 | 0.96 | |
| Théophile Bongoro | Party for Rally and Equity in Chad | 46,784 | 0.76 | |
| Alladoum Djarma | Chadian Socialist Action for Renewal | 33,765 | 0.55 | |
| Brice Guedmbaye | Movement of Patriotic Chadians for the Republic | 27,848 | 0.45 | |
| Yacine Abdramane Sakine | Reformist Party | 22,328 | 0.36 | |
| Mansiri Lopsikréo | Les Élites | 15,147 | 0.24 | |
| Nasra Djimasngar | A New Day | 12,738 | 0.21 | |
| Total | 6,191,781 | 100.00 | ||
| Valid votes | 6,191,781 | 99.62 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 23,463 | 0.38 | ||
| Total votes | 6,215,244 | 100.00 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 8,202,207 | 75.78 | ||
| Source: Africa 24 | ||||
Parliamentary elections
editReferences
edit- ^ World Report Book 2008. Human Rights Watch. <https://www.hrw.org/wr2k8/pdfs/wr2k8_web.pdf>
- ^ Nohlen, D, Krennerich; M Thibaut, B (1999). Elections in Africa: A data handbook. p. 238. ISBN 0-19-829645-2.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Chad Country Report". Freedom House. Archived from the original on 26 November 2016. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
- ^ "Chad's president Idriss Deby re-elected amid boycott". bbc.com. British Broadcasting Corporation. 10 May 2011. Archived from the original on 2016-11-26. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
- ^ Nako, Madjiasra (10 April 2016). "Chad holds presidential election as Deby vies to extend rule". reuters.com. Thomson Reuters. Archived from the original on 2016-11-26. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
- ^ "The World Factbook - Chad". cia.gov. United States Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
- ^ "Free Access to Selected Content". 10 April 2019.
- ^ "Chad's President Idriss Déby dies after clashes with rebels". 2021-04-20. Retrieved 2024-03-30.
- ^ "Chad's new leader - Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno". 2021-04-21. Retrieved 2024-03-30.