Chad’s ruling party wins majority in controversial parliamentary election

According to preliminary results, the ruling party of Chad’s government won the majority of seats in the most recent parliamentary election, which was largely boycotted by opposition parties.

President Mahamat Idriss Deby’s party, the Patriotic Salvation Movement, has secured 124 of the 188 seats at the National Assembly, Ahmed Bartchiret, head of the electoral commission, announced late on Saturday.

Opposition parties claimed that the participation rate, which was set at 51.56 percent, raised doubts among voters about the contest’s validity.

Deby’s party referred to the December 29 election as the last step in the country’s transition to democracy following his 2021 military coup.

Deby’s father, Idriss Deby Itno, who had been in power for three decades, passed away shortly after the takeover. The disputed presidential election of last year was ultimately won by Mahamat Deby.

The vote, which also included municipal and regional elections, was Chad’s first in more than a decade.

Deby had predicted that the election would “open the door for the long-awaited and desired era of decentralization” by referring to the power transfer between the provincial and municipal levels.

‘Charade’

The election was boycotted by more than 10 opposition parties, including the main Transformers party, whose candidate, Succes Masra, came second in the presidential election.

The primary opposition had criticized the election as a “charade” and expressed concerns that it would result in a repeat of the election, which election observers deemed unconvincing.

The Boko Haram armed group’s attacks in the Lake Chad region and the end of decades-long military cooperation with France, its former colonial power are all issues facing Chad, which is at a crucial time in its security struggles.

Following a string of coups in West and Central Africa’s Sahel region, Mali, Niger, and Burkinabe recently kicked out French troops and strengthened ties with Russia.