| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Bunge / National Assembly |
| Structure of parliament |
Unicameral |
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
25 October 2015 |
| Purpose of elections |
The Revolutionary Party of Tanzania (CCM, effectively in power since Tanzania's independence from Britain in 1961) retained its parliamentary majority, but saw its share of seats reduced. It took 189 of the 264 directly elected seats (71%, see note 1), down from 186 of the 239 seats (78%) in the 2010 elections. The opposition Coalition of the People's Constitution (Ukawa, see note 2) took 34 seats, up from 23. Elections in Zanzibar archipelago were annulled for not being free and fair, after physical fights involving rival electoral commissioners.
In the presidential elections, the Works Minister John Magufuli (CCM) defeated former Prime Minister Edward Lowassa, who was endorsed by Ukawa. Mr. Lowassa left the CMM to join the main opposition party, Chadema, after failing to win the CCM primary for the presidential candidate in July 2015. He rejected the election results. Mr. Magufuli is due to succeed President Jakaya Kikwete (CCM), who was constitutionally barred from seeking a third term in December. Ms. Samia Hassan Suluhu will become the first woman Vice-President of the country.
During the election campaign, the major parties focused on education and health, promising free education and health insurance for all. The 2015 elections followed the postponement of a constitutional referendum, scheduled for 30 April. Ukawa, which had called in vain for reduced presidential powers and a federal system with a three-government structure (consisting of mainland Tanzania, the semi-autonomous Zanzibar archipelago and a union of the two), called for a boycott of the constitutional referendum. It was postponed indefinitely due to delays in the registration of voters.
Note 1:
In addition, there are 113 seats reserved for women (attributed to political parties in proportion to their share of the electoral vote), five members from Zanzibar (two of whom must be women), 10 members appointed by the President (five of whom must be women) and the Attorney General. The Speaker may be designated from outside Parliament and becomes a member of parliament by virtue of holding the office of Speaker.
Note 2:
Ukawa (Umoja wa Katiba ya Wananchi) comprises Chadema (Party for Democracy and Development, led by Mr. Freeman Mbowe), the Civic United Front (CUF, led by Mr. Ibrahim Lipumba), NCCR-Mageuzi (led by Mr. James Mbatia) and the National League for Democracy (NLD) led by Mr. Emmanuel Makaidi. The coalition was formed following the opposition's rejection of the constitution-making process in 2014.
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Date of previous elections: 31 October 2010
Date of dissolution of the outgoing legislature: 20 August 2015
Timing of election: Upon normal expiry
Expected date of next elections: October 2020
Number of seats at stake: 239 (full renewal)
Number of candidates: 1,250 (1,012 men, 238 women)
Percentage of women candidates: 19%
Number of parties contesting the election: Not available.
Number of parties winning seats: 5
Alternation of power: No
Date of the first session of the new parliament: 17 November 2015
Name of the new Speaker: Mr. Job Ndugai (CCM)
|
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 25 October 2015 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
23'253'982
|
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of votes |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Candidates |
Votes |
|
|
% |
|
|
| Revolutionary Party of Tanzania (CCM) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Chadema (Party for Democracy and Development) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Civic United Front (CUF) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ACT Wazalendo |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| NCCR-Mageuzi |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
Directly Elected |
Women seats |
|
|
| Revolutionary Party of Tanzania (CCM) |
253
|
189 |
64 |
|
|
| Chadema (Party for Democracy and Development) |
70
|
34 |
36 |
|
|
| Civic United Front (CUF) |
42
|
32 |
10 |
|
|
| ACT Wazalendo |
1
|
1 |
0 |
|
|
| NCCR-Mageuzi |
1
|
1 |
0 |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
236
136
36.56%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Sources:
Parliament (18.12.2015, 01.01.2017, 22.11.2017; 24.11.2017)
http://www.nec.go.tz/
http://www.ifes.org
http://www.bbc.com
http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/
Note on the distribution of seats according to political group:
The distribution of seats according to political group above refers to the composition of Parliament as at 18 December 2015. There were seven vacancies among the 264 directly elected seats and three vacancies among the 113 special seats for women.
The vacancies, except for one directly elected seat, were subsequently filled, bringing the total number of members to 392. The distribution of seats as at January 2017 for 391 seats (excluding the Attorney General who does not belong to a political party) was as follows:
- Revolutionary Party of Tanzania (CCM): 277
- Chadema (Party for Democracy and Development): 71
- Civic United Front (CUF): 41
- ACT Wazalendo: 1
- NCCR-Mageuzi: 1
Note on the distribution of seats according to sex:
The distribution of seats according to sex above refers to the composition of Parliament as at 18 December 2015. There were a total of 372 members (with 21 vacancies), 136 of whom were women as follows:
- 25 elected from constituencies;
- 110 elected by political parties in proportion to their share of the electoral vote;
- 1 appointed by the President (the Deputy Speaker).
The vacancies, except for one directly elected seat, were subsequently filled and the number of women increased to 145 out of 392 members by September 2017 as follows:
- 25 elected from constituencies;
- 113 elected by political parties in proportion to their share of the electoral vote;
- 2 out of 5 members from Zanzibar appointed by the President;
- 5 out of 10 members appointed by the President (including the Deputy Speaker).
Two directly elected seats held by male members subsequently fell vacant. As at 24 November 2017, there were 145 women out of 390 members. |
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