This article was updated on November 5, 2017.

Here is a factual presentation of the 15 national elections planned in Africa for 2017 with a traffic jam in July/August. The previous update on the last elections of 2016 is available here.

 

For a full infographic experience click here.

February

• Somalia

The Presidential election, by the Members of Parliament, took place on February 8. Mohammed Abdullahi Farmajo, an ex-Prime Minister, was elected.

April

• The Gambia

The Gambia organised parliamentary elections on April 6, 2017. The UDP, the party of the new President A. Barrow – elected in December 2016, have won 31 seats out the 53 available.

May

• Algeria

The parliamentary elections took place on May 4, 2017. The turnout was low: 35%. The coalition in power, made up of the Front de Libération Nationale (FLN) and Rassemblement National Démocratique (RND),  remains in power. FLN obtained 164 MPs, 57 less than in 2012, and 25,99% of the ballots. RND got 14,91% and 100 MPs, 29 more seats than in 2012.

June

• Lesotho

Snap parliamentary elections took place on June 3, 2017. The All Basotho Convention (ABC) party led by Thomas Thabane, who returned from his South African exil, became first with 48 MPs, against 46 in 2015, and 40,52% of the votes. The ABC negotiated a governmental majority with 3 other parties: the Alliance of Democrats (9 MPs), the Basotho National Party (5 MPs), and the Reformed Congress of Lesotho (1 MP). Thomas Thabane became Prime minister again, after 2012-2015, on June 16, 2017. The Democratic Congress of Pakalitha Mosisili, who was in power since the 2015 snap elections, lost 17 seats, and 25,82% of the votes for 30 MPs. Its main allied, the Lesotho Congress for Democracy, led by Mothetjoa Metsing, lost one seat compared to 2015 with 11 MPs for 8,95% of the votes.

July

• Senegal

Planned on July 2, 2017, the Parliamentary elections took place but on July 30. The coalition in power, Beno Bokk Yaakaar, won 125 out of the 165 seats in the new assembly. The participation rate reached more than 50%.

• The Republic of Congo

The two-round parliamentary elections took place on July 16 and 30, 2017. The Parti Congolais du Travail (PCT) and its allies of the presidential majority won more than 100 seats out of 151. The PCT of President Nguesso won 90 seats on its own.

August

• Rwanda

On August 4, Rwanda organised its presidential election. The outgoing President, Paul Kagame of the Patriotic Front (PF) was reelected with 98,7% of the vote according to the official results. In 2015, a constitutional change, adopted by referendum, allowed him to run again in 2017 beyond the (then) two-term limit.

• Angola

The parliamentary elections took place on August 23, 2017.  The candidate from the winning party becomes the country President. President Dos Santos, in power since 1979, does not run this year. The party in power, the Popular Movement for Liberation of Angola (MPLA), would receive 61,1% of the vote and get 150 out of 220 members of Parliament. The main opposition party, the National Union for the Independence of Angola (UNITA) continues to reject the results.

October

• Liberia

On October 10, Liberians choose their Members and Parliament (MP). 38% of Liberians also voted for George Weah, candidate of the Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC) in the first round of the presidential election.  The current Vice-President to President Sirleaf, Joseph Boakai, of the Unity Party (UP) came second with 28%. A second round is planned on November 7, 2017 but preparations were halted following a decision by the Supreme Court to investigate accusations of frauds brought by Charles Brumskine who came officially third in the first round, eliminating him from the second. premier tour. Regarding the MPs, the CDC came first with 21 seats, UP second with 19 seats and C. Brumskine’s Liberty Party got 3 seats. The results of October 10 can be found here.

• Kenya

Kenya organised on August 8, 2017, both parliamentary and presidential elections. Uhuru Kenyatta, the outgoing President, was officially reelected with 54,27% of the vote. The parliamentary results are incomplete now. However, the coalition supporting U/ Kenyatta is leading the first results. The independent electoral commission publishes results one step at a time: https://www.iebc.or.ke/ Some violent events have been taking place around the elections until now. Raila Odinga, the other main presidential candidate (44,74%), filed a petition at the Supreme Court. The petition focused on issues about the transmission of the results by the electoral commission. On September 1st, the Chief Justice declared the August election “invalid, null and void” because of irregularities regarding the transmission of the results by the electoral commission. The re-run of the election had to take place within 60 days by the end of October 2017. They took place on October 26, 2017. However, R. Odinga did not run and the elections were actually organised only in some parts of the country. The official results are expected on November 6, 2017.

November

• Somaliland

Due to the drought and the risk of famine in the Horn of Africa, Legislative and Presidential elections, that were planned on March 27, have been postponed to November 13. This country is not recognised by the international community since its unilateral independence from Somalia in 1991.

Elections already postponed to 2018…

• Sierra Leone

Legislative and presidential elections are planned for March 2018.

• Gabon

Following a request made by the Prime minister, the constitutional court accepted on July 11, 2017, the postponement of the parliamentary elections planned on July 29, 2017. They should now take place before April 2018 at the latest. The last parliamentary elections were organised in 2013. This postponement takes place after the violent and contested 2016 presidential elections.

• South Sudan

Parliamentary and presidential elections have been postponed to 2018. The last elections took place in 2010.

…and even 2019

• Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

More details here ici. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) declared on August 20 that elections could not take place this year in the DRC. Communiqué is available here. The Independent National Electoral Commission declared early November that elections should be held in December 2018.