General elections were held in Sudan to elect a President and National Assembly between 2 and 17 March 1996. They were the first elections since 1986 due to a military coup in 1989, and the first simultaneous elections for the presidency and National Assembly. 125 members of the 400-seat National Assembly had been nominated before the election, leaving 275 seats to be elected (of which 51 were ultimately uncontested).[1][2] 900 candidates ran for the 275 seats.[2] There were no political parties at the time, and all candidates ran as independents.
In the presidential election, 40 candidates ran against incumbent Omar al-Bashir, who emerged victorious with 75.4% of the vote.[3][2] Opposition groups boycotted the elections, claiming they were unfair.[2] Because of the civil war, no voting took place in 11 Southern districts.[2]
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