Rwanda - July 2024
Incumbent Kagame wins presidential election with 99 per cent of vote
Rwanda’s presidential and legislative elections were held on 15 and 20 July, respectively. The presidential contest was won by incumbent, Paul Kagame, who secured a fourth term with over 99 per cent of the vote, according to the official results released by the National Electoral Commission (NEC). Frank Habineza of the Democratic Green party came second with 0.53 per cent of the vote and independent candidate Philippe Mpayimana third with 0.32 per cent. Habineza and Mpayimana (both men), were the only two opposition candidates to be approved to run, after several others (including women candidates) were barred by the NEC from running. In the legislative elections, the ruling coalition, Rwandan Patriotic Front-Inkotanyi secured 37 out of 80 seats in the Chamber of Deputies (Lower Chamber), followed by the Social Democratic Party and the Green Party with 5 seats each. 51 women were elected (24 indirectly under the country’s gender quota system), an increase from 48 women elected in 2018. Voter turnout was reported by the NEC to be 98 per cent of registered voters. International election observers from various regional organizations described the voting process as peaceful and orderly.
Sources: France24, The East African, Rwandan National Electoral Commission, BBC, Al Jazeera, COMESA, Reuters, The Chronicles, Parliament of the Republic of Rwanda
