The ruling party in Togo, the Union for the Republic (UNIR), has won a sweeping majority in the country’s first-ever Senate elections, securing 34 out of 41 contested seats, according to provisional results announced Sunday by the Independent National Electoral Commission (CENI).
Municipal and regional councilors cast their votes on Saturday to elect 41 senators to the newly created upper house of Parliament, which will ultimately consist of 61 seats. Under the new Constitution, President Faure Gnassingbé will appoint the remaining 20 senators, granting him significant influence over the chamber’s composition.
As expected, UNIR emerged victorious with a dominant 34-seat win, while the remaining seven seats were distributed among other political groups: BATIR secured two seats, ADDI one, UFC one, and independent candidates won three.
However, the elections were marred by a boycott from major opposition parties, including the National Alliance for Change (ANC), Democratic Forces for the Republic (FDR), and the Dynamique for the Majority of the People (MPD) coalition, which unites political parties and civil society organizations. The opposition denounced the election as part of what they call a “constitutional coup,” criticizing recent reforms that have abolished presidential elections and extended Gnassingbé’s rule. In power since 2005, the president was initially supposed to serve one additional term in 2025 under the previous Constitution before the latest reforms altered the system.
Despite opposition outcry, the Constitutional Court is expected to confirm the final results in the coming days, marking a controversial transition to a parliamentary system.
Togo’s Ruling Party Dominates in the Controversial Senate Elections
