| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Assemblée nationale / National Assembly |
| Structure of parliament |
Unicameral |
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
14 October 2007 |
| Purpose of elections |
General elections were held for all the seats in the National Assembly following the premature dissolution of this body on 30 August 2007. Elections had previously taken place on 27 October 2002. |
The 2007 parliamentary elections were the first to be held under President Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé, whose father, Gnassingbé Eyadema, had controlled the country from 1967 until his death in February 2005. The military subsequently declared Mr. Gnassingbé as the new President, but international pressure forced the country to organize presidential elections in April 2005, in which Mr. Gnassingbe was officially elected as the new Head of State. Supporters of the main opposition candidate, Mr. Emmanuel Bob Akitani (of the Union of Forces for Change - UFC), took to the streets in protest, which turned into riots. The post-election violence led thousands of citizens to flee the country.
In August 2006, a power-sharing deal was reached that set up a transitional national unity government and an independent electoral commission. In September, Mr. Yaovi Agboyibo, leader of the opposition Action Committee for Renewal (CAR), became Prime Minister. The UFC did not join the government.
The 2007 elections, which were originally scheduled for 24 June, were delayed twice due to disputes over the issuing of voter cards, and were finally held on 14 October. Organizing free and fair elections was seen as an important step in re-establishing Togos relationship with international donors, including the European Union (EU), which had suspended its aid in 1993 due to governance concerns.
In all 2,122 candidates and 395 parties contested the 2007 elections. For the first time in nearly two decades, no opposition party boycotted the elections.
The main parties were the ruling Togolese People's Rally (RPT), which had taken 72 of the 81 seats in the previous elections held in October 2002 and the UFC, which had not participated in the 2002 elections.
The RPT pledged to rebuild the country through reconciliation policies implemented under President Gnassingbé. The UFC, led by Mr. Gilchrist Olympio, pledged to end dictatorship and to alleviate poverty, which affects 80 per cent of the country's population. Prime Minister Agboyibo's CAR presented 10 priority projects aimed at modernizing the country. The party called for voters' support to make 2007 the year of Togo's accession to democracy.
A total of 84.92 per cent of the nearly 3 million registered voters turned out at the polls. No violent incident was reported on polling day.
Over 3,500 observers, including those from the EU and African Union (EU), monitored the polls. The international observers said they were satisfied with the well-organized and transparent elections with the EU observers praising the massive turnout.
The announcement of the final results was delayed due to a recount in the capital, Lomé, which gave the UFC four more seats. The UFC won a total of 27 seats, and the ruling RPT remained the largest party in the National Assembly with 50 seats, losing 22. The remaining 4 seats went to the CAR. In all, seven women were elected.
The newly-elected National Assembly held its first session on 13 November. On 25 November it re-elected Mr. El Hadj Abass Bonfoh (RPT) as its Speaker. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 14 October 2007 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
2'974'718
2'526'049 (84.92%)
181'941
2'344'108 |
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
|
|
|
|
| Togolese People's Rally (RPT) |
50
|
|
|
|
|
| Union of Forces for Change (UFC) |
27
|
|
|
|
|
| Action Committee for Renewal (CAR) |
4
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
74
7
8.64%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Sources:
- http://www.cenitogo.tg/
- National Assembly (07.11.2007, 01.01.2008) |
|
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
